US stocks took a tumble overnight on concern for the state of the economic recovery and a stronger US dollar.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 94 points to 10,332. The S&P500 Index is down 15 points at 1,095 and the NASDAQ fell 36 points to 2,157.
In economic news: The Labor Department released its weekly report on initial jobless claims showing that jobless claims totaled 505,000 in the week ended Nov 14, relatively unchanged from the week before.
In company news: Shares in financial holding company JPMorgan Chase & Company (NYSE:JPM) lost 1.91 per cent to $42.55. The company plans to acquire the other half of UK broker Cazenove that it does not already own in a deal that values the company at $3.4 billion.
Shares in retailer Sears Holdings Corporation (NASDAQ:SHLD) declined 3.72 per cent to $72.95. The owner of Kmart reported a $127 million loss for the quarter that was narrower than expected as a result of an increase in same store sales at its Kmart stores, the first in four years.
Shares in consumer products manufacturer Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL) dropped 1.69 per cent to $84.42. According to Reuters the company says it expects to see a 4 - 7 per cent increase in sales volumes next year as demand from emerging markets like China and Brazil starts to take-off.
And shares in specialty retailer for the home Williams-Sonoma Inc (NYSE:WSM) gained 4.99 per cent to $22.08. The retailer reported better than expected earnings for the quarter and upgraded its outlook for the full year.
Turning to the NASDAQ Top 100: And majority of stocks closed in the red on the Nasdaq overnight, however NetApp was the best performer, adding 4.09% to $30.83, followed by Directv and Hansen Natural. The worst performer was Marvel technology Group, shares fell 5.1% to $15.27. Intel and Microchip Technology also closed lower.
