Stocks fall in opening trading as investors digest consumer spending, weekly jobless data

Stocks open lower on employment, retail sales

Stocks are drifting lower in early trading as news of an improving job market fails to offset the market’s disappointment over sales at Wal-Mart Stores Inc.

The Labor Department says new claims for unemployment insurance fell to a seasonally adjusted 502,000 from an upwardly revised 514,000 the previous week. That’s the fewest claims since the week ending Jan. 3, and below economists’ estimates.

The news is evidence the job market is slowly healing.

But investors are more concerned by Wal-Mart’s lower than expected third-quarter sales, a sign of weak consumer spending.

The Dow Jones industrial average is down 10.43, or 0.1 percent, at 10,280.83. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index is off 1.69, or 0.2 percent, at 1,096.82, while the Nasdaq composite index is down 1.16, or 0.1 percent, at 2,165.74.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

Wall Street is looking at a lower open Thursday as news of an improving job market failed to offset the market’s disappointment over sales at Wal-Mart Stores Inc.

The Labor Department said new claims for unemployment insurance fell to a seasonally adjusted 502,000 from an upwardly revised 514,000 the previous week. That’s the fewest claims since the week ending Jan. 3, and below economists’ estimates.

The news is evidence the job market is slowly healing.

But investors are more concerned by Wal-Mart’s lower than expected third-quarter sales, a sign of weak consumer spending.

While the nation’s biggest retailer reported third-quarter earnings that beat analysts’ expectations, it said same-store sales, those from stores open at least a year and an indicator of a retailer’s strength, dropped during the quarter. Wal-Mart also said same-store sales would range from a drop of 1 percent to a gain of 1 percent in its fourth quarter, a disappointment for investors.

Because of its size, Wal-Mart is seen as a key indicator of consumer spending trends. Investors are concerned about consumers’ ability to lift the economy into a strong recovery.

Meanwhile, Kohl’s Corp. said higher sales helped third-quarter profit rise 21 percent.

Both Wal-Mart and Kohl’s raised their full-year guidance.

The reports come a day after Macy’s Inc. reported that its sales improved during the quarter. Nordstrom Inc. and Walt Disney Co. are also due to report results after the market closes Thursday.

Ahead of the opening, Dow Jones industrial average futures fell 25, or 0.2 percent, to 10,234. Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures fell 3.00, or 0.3 percent, to 1,093.30, while Nasdaq 100 index futures fell 4.00, or 0.2 percent, to 1,779.75.

Investors were already pausing before the retail earnings reports, having sent stock prices sharply higher over the past week. Record-low interest rates and the resulting slide in the dollar have been major forces behind the recent surge in stocks.

But the euro was up slightly against the dollar Thursday. Gold prices fell, while oil prices also edged lower.

Markets overseas were mostly lower. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei stock average fell 0.7 percent. In afternoon trading, Britain’s FTSE 100 and Germany’s DAX index rose 0.1 percent and France’s CAC-40 was flat.

Bond prices were mixed. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, was unchanged from 3.48 percent late Tuesday. The yield on the three-month T-bill, considered one of the safest investments, rose to 0.07 percent from 0.06 percent late Tuesday. Bond markets were closed Wednesday for Veterans Day.