Traders work during the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on March 16, 2020 at Wall Street in New York City.
Johannes Eisele | AFP | Getty Images
Dow Jones Industrial Average rises 11 points
The Dow advanced 11.93 points, or 0.05% to close at 26,281.82. The S&P 500 dipped 0.34% to 3,112.35. The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.69% to 9,615.81. The Nasdaq-100 index, which tracks the composite’s 100-largest nonfinancial companies, dropped 0.77% after hitting an intraday record. Stocks fell for the first time this month after the release of disappointing unemployment data.
Jobless claims data worse than expected
The Labor Department said 1.877 million Americans filed for unemployment benefits last week, topping a Dow Jones estimate of 1.775 million. Continuing jobless claims rose sharply, nearly reaching 21.5 million. The data was released a day ahead of the department’s monthly jobs report.
Big Tech falls, airlines surge
Shares of Facebook, Amazon and Netflix all dropped at least 0.7%. Alphabet and Apple closed lower by 1.73% and 0.86%, respectively. American Airlines, meanwhile, rallied 41.25% while Delta gained 13.73%. United Airlines closed 16.20% higher.
What happens next?
The monthly nonfarm payrolls report is set for release Friday morning.
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Stocks fell for the first time this month after the release of disappointing unemployment data.