WALL Street stocks fell overnight after official data showed higher-than-expected initial weekly jobless insurance claims and a slower pace of imports, suggesting slower economic activity.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 53.81 points (0.51 per cent) in initial trades to 10,513.52, a day after a modest rise on the back of encouraging wholesale inventories data that lifted hopes of economic recovery.
The Nasdaq composite dipped 9.40 points (0.40 per cent) to 2349.55 while the broad-market Standard & Poor's 500 index slipped 5.55 points (0.48 per cent) to 1140.06
Before the opening bell, the government said 462,000 initial jobless claims were filed in the week ending March 6. Most analysts had expected claims to fall to 460,000.
The government also reported that the US trade deficit narrowed unexpectedly in January as volume fell for the first time in five months, led by a drop in imports.
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The Commerce Department said the trade deficit shrank to a seasonally adjusted $US37.3 billion, down from a revised $US39.9 billion in December.
Most analysts had expected the trade gap would widen to $US41.0 billion.
"There remains an underlying bullish bias. The overall mood, however, has been subdued with few catalysts to speak of," said Patrick O'Hare of Briefing.com.
Analysts at Charles Schwab & Co. said the markets were also concerned after stronger-than-expected economic data out of China, "which sparked some fears that the government could rein in stimulus measures and threaten the global recovery".
The fears "were exacerbated by the weekly initial jobless claims report", the analysts said in a client note.
Dollar lower on thin tradeJobless claims reflect weak recovery
