U.S. stocks fell Thursday, as higher commodity prices and more bad news from financials outweighed a lower jobless number and strength from discount retailers.
Oil prices continued to rise, touching $105.97 a barrel before easing back to $104.75, up 23 cents for the day. The rise follows Wednesday's unexpected drop in U.S. inventories and news that OPEC will not increase its output.
Meanwhile, Thornburg Mortgage (nyse: TMA - news - people ) said late Wednesday it failed to meet a $28 million margin call from JPMorgan Chase (nyse: JPM - news - people ), triggering a series of defaults. The unmet call resulted in cross-defaults on all other reverse-repurchase agreements with JPMorgan, to the tune of $320 million.
Shares of Thornburg plunged 57%.
Meanwhile, bond insurer Ambac Financial Group (nyse: ABK - news - people ) was down over 11% after plans to bolster its capital base sounded a hollow note for investors.
Wall Street didn't get excited over a fall in jobless claims last week. Claims dropped to 351,000 from a revised 375,000 the week prior.
In the retail sector, same-store sales inched higher overall in February, but cash-strapped shoppers appeared to do most of their spending at discount chains like Wal-Mart (nyse: WMT - news - people ). The Dow component reported a 2.6% rise last month, while apparel retailers like the Gap (nyse: GPS - news - people ) and Limited Brands (nyse: LTD - news - people ) saw declines.
On Wednesday, BJ's Wholesale Club (nyse: BJ - news - people ) reported earnings that beat the Street's estimate, reaping the very same benefits.
Shares of Wal-Mart gained nearly 1% Thursday, while BJ's was trading down over 1%.
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