The DJIA posted it’s second triple digit decline in a row on Thursday. A host of international and domestic political developments are worrying the traders. The worrying developments include Iraq, surprise defeat of a key House Republican and the poor global growth forecast by the World Bank. “The headlines make people a little bit nervous, but we’re not seeing anything that would resemble a panic,” said Ian Winer, director of equity trading at Wedbush Securities.
Economic reports on Thursday did little to kindle investor enthusiasm. Retail sales for May increased 0.3% from the previous month, short of expectations for a 0.7% rise. Excluding autos, sales grew 0.1%, versus forecasts of 0.4% growth. Separately, initial claims for jobless benefits edged up 4,000 to 317,000 in the latest week, topping estimates of 310,000.