Stocks Opened Lower as Jobless Claims Rose

U.S. stocks opened modestly lower on Thursday after a report showed a rise in weekly jobless benefit claims. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately fell 112.12 points, or 0.40%, to 27,580.76. The S&P 500 slipped 18 points, or 0.28%, to 3,365.53. The Nasdaq Composite retreated 3.44 points, or 0.03%, to 11,143.02.

Oil futures lost ground Thursday, after minutes of the Federal Reserve’s last meeting and U.S. petroleum inventory data underlined concerns about the outlook for demand. West Texas Intermediate crude for September delivery declined 38 cents, or 0.9%, to $42.73 a barrel. October Brent crude dropped 41 cents, or 0.9%, to $44.96 a barrel.

The Labor Department’s weekly unemployment claims report showed that 1.1 million workers filed for benefits last week, well above consensus economists expectations of another 920,000.