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Wall Street sharply lower in early deals

US stocks were sharply lower in early deals after the government said jobless claims climbed last week, insurance giant American International Group Inc. reported a large loss, and Wal-Mart Stores Inc.'s sales results weighed on sentiment.

Off more than 150 points early on, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was more recently off 92.41 points at 11,563.66.

Of the blue-chip index's 30 components, 22 were trading in the red, the losses paced by AIG, which was down 15.5% after the insurance giant reported $5.36 billion in mortgage-related losses.

The S&P 500 shed 8.5 points to 1,280.69, with all but one of its 10 industry groups on the decline, led by consumer discretionary and financials, with both sectors off 1%.

The technology-laden Nasdaq Composite declined 8.73 points to 2,369.64.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, oil futures gained, with crude for September delivery recently up $2.37 at $120.95 a barrel.

Retailers also deepened investors' gloom, with most reporting worse-than-forecast same-store sales for July, with Wal-Mart Stores, the world's largest retailer, among those missing targets.

Ahead of the opening bell, the Labor Department reported the count of Americans filing for unemployment benefits last week climbed to 455,000, its highest level in more than six years.

Story supplied by MoneyAM

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