US stocks slipped on Thursday as Goldman Sachs pulled financials lower and an unexpected rise in jobless claims added to bearish sentiment that put the S&P on track for its fifth day of losses in six. Concerns about higher inflation overseas pushed investors toward defensive stocks, with the consumer staples group the S&P's top performer.
The Dow industrials turned positive, as investors bought some big names in the consumer staples sector. The Dow's top two percentage gainers were Coca-Cola Co, up 1.3 percent, and Kraft Foods Inc, up 1.6 percent. Goldman Sachs fell 2.8 percent to $155.71 and was the biggest drag on the S&P financial sector, which was the benchmark's worst-performing group, down 0.8 percent.
The Dow Jones industrial average was up 1.55 points, or 0.01 percent, at 12,272.54. But the Standard & Poor's 500 Index was down 1.61 points, or 0.12 percent, at 1,312.80. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 9.04 points, or 0.33 percent, at 2,752.48.
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