US stocks closed lower on Thursday. The increase in initial jobless claims last week exceeded expectations. Investors are turning their attention to November's non-farm payroll data due on Friday.
At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 248.33 points or 0.55% to 44,765.71 points; the Nasdaq was down 34.39 points or 0.17% to 19,700.72 points; the S&P 500 index slipped 11.38 points or 0.19% to 6,075.11 points.
During Thursday's session, the S&P 500 index rose to a high of 6,094.55 points, and the Nasdaq rose to 19,790.03 points, both reaching intraday record highs.
On the economic data front, the U.S. Labor Department reported that the increase in initial jobless claims last week exceeded expectations.
For the week ended November 30, the number of Americans filing initial claims for unemployment benefits increased by 9,000, rising to a total of 224,000. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had an average expectation of 215,000.
Previously, the ADP employment report released on Wednesday showed that the growth in employment in U.S. private businesses in November was below expectations. That month, U.S. companies added 146,000 jobs, while economists surveyed by Dow Jones had an average expectation of 163,000.
The U.S. Commerce Department reported that the U.S. trade deficit in goods and services narrowed nearly 12% in October to $73.8 billion. The median economist forecast was $75 billion. Imports fell 4% to $339.6 billion, marking a four-month low. During the same period, exports decreased by 1.6%. These figures are not adjusted for inflation.
In corporate news, reports indicate that TSMC is in negotiations with Nvidia to produce Blackwell AI chips at TSMC’s new Arizona plant. TSMC is reported to be preparing to start production early next year.
Nvidia’s Blackwell chips were launched in March this year and have so far been produced at TSMC’s plant in Taiwan. Nvidia has found that demand for the chip from customers involved in generative AI and accelerated computing is high. The company states that the chip is 30 times faster when handling tasks like processing chatbot answers.
Reports suggest that if the deal is reached, it will secure another client for TSMC’s Arizona factory, which plans to begin mass production in 2025. Apple and AMD are currently clients of the Arizona facility.
It is reported that Musk's AI start-up company xAI has ordered GB200 AI servers worth up to $1.08 billion from Nvidia and successfully secured priority delivery. These servers are expected to start delivery in January 2025 and will be manufactured by Foxconn under contract. Reports indicate that Musk personally communicated with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang to discuss xAI's GB200 server order.
In Microsoft's latest Windows 11 Canary Channel Build 27758 update, a new feature was introduced to the Microsoft Store. Starting from version 22411.1401, Windows users can directly update Win32 applications that rely on external update mechanisms via the Microsoft Store.