Stocks Ended Down on Tax Bill Concerns

U.S. stocks ended lower on Thursday as investors worried about potential roadblocks to Republicans’ tax overhaul, offseting their optimism over strong retail sales data. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 76.77 points, or 0.31%, to 24,508.66. The S&P 500 lost 10.84 points, or 0.41%, to 2,652.01. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 19.27 points, or 0.28%, to 6,856.53.

Oil settled lower Thursday as recent crude supply and production data fueled volatile trading in the energy market. January West Texas Intermediate crude rose 44 cents, or 0.8%, to settle at $57.04 a barrel. Brent oil for February added 87 cents, or 1.4%, to $63.31 a barrel.

Sales at U.S. retailers climbed 0.8% in November, the start of the holiday shopping season. Separately, jobless claims fell 11,000 in the latest week, while U.S. import prices rose 0.7% in November.