U.S. stocks closed lower Thursday, as concern about violence in Iraq increased, along with the price of oil.
In U.S. economic news, the number of Americans filing new claims for jobless benefits unexpectedly rose last week, although not enough to alter the view of a labor market that is picking up steam. The Labor Department reported import prices rose 0.1 percent last month after declining 0.5 percent in April. The Commerce Department reported inventories rose 0.6 percent in April and picked up excluding cars, boosting expectations of increased economic growth in the second quarter. Retail sales rose less than expected in May, which had sales up 0.3 percent last month and the prior month revised higher to 0.5 percent.
In corporate news, airlines including United, Delta, and JetBlue were slammed, along with the Dow Jones Transportation Average off 1.9 percent. Olive Garden-operator Darden Restaurants and fast-food chain McDonald's were among the consumer discretionary shares hit. Shares of Lululemon Athletica dropped to a more-than three-year low after the Canadian yogawear retailer reduced its revenue and earnings forecast for the fiscal year and said its chief financial officer would retire early next year. Twitter shares gained after the micro-blogging service said Ali Rowghani had resigned as chief operating officer, effective Thursday.