US stocks fell Thursday, led by retailer Wal-Mart and financial company Citigroup, as fears of higher interest rates weighed on the market.
A sharper-than-expected drop in weekly jobless claims weighed on the market, as labour costs edged higher, sparking new fears that inflation is more of a threat than the Federal Reserve has acknowledged.
The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 112.77 points, or 1.10 percent, at 10,198.03. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was down 12.05 points, or 1.08 percent, at 1,109.47. The technology-laced Nasdaq Composite Index fell 27.75 points, or 1.42 percent, to 1,929.37.