Stocks Slammed On Jobs Numbers, Philly Fed Index (SPY, QQQQ, GLD, USO, TLT, UUP)

Stocks fell on Thursday after initial jobless claims printed at 500,000 versus consensus estimates calling for 475,000. The Philadelphia Fed Index also showed signs that the economy is weakening. The measure of manufacturing activity in the Philadelphia region unexpectedly contracted in August. Economists had projected that the index would expand to 7.5, but the indicator actually fell to -7.7. Last month it registered at 5.1. A positive number indicates growth, whereas a negative print is indicative of contraction. The data fueled a sell-off in the stock market which sent the Dow Jones Industrial Average down 144 points, or 1.39%, to close at 10,271. The widely watched index traded in a range between 10,216 and 10,411. Bulls managed to move stocks higher in afternoon trading, but the move off of the lows was not terribly convincing. The SPDR S&P 500 ETF

fell 1.74% to $107.88. As has been the trend, real volume came into the market as stocks plunged. More than 265 million SPY shares traded hands versus a 3-month daily average of just under 250 million. On up days, volume has been nowhere near this level. This is not a healthy sign, and may be foreshadowing more declines in the S&P. The PowerShares QQQ Trust ETF

, which tracks the performance of the Nasdaq 100, shed 1.51% and closed at $44.86. Year-to-date, the heavily traded ETF has lost nearly 2%. The QQQQ's biggest component company, Apple Computer

, fell 1.26% to just under $250. Gold managed to hang onto marginal gains today, despite the tough tape. COMEX gold futures are currently up 0.21% to 1,234. The SPDR Gold Trust ETF

closed New York Stock Exchange trading 0.14% in the green at $120.39. In the last month, the GLD has surged 4.03% after a pull back in July. Crude oil continues to get smacked around over concerns about the economic outlook. NYMEX crude futures dived 1.3% to below the $75 level in today's session. Currently, crude futures are trading at $74.44 on electronic exchanges. The United States Oil Fund ETF

closed New York Stock Exchange trading down 1.28% to $33.25. Treasuries continued to push higher on Thursday as jittery investors pour more money into U.S. debt. The iShares Barclays 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF

jumped 1.56% to $106.16. The yield on the 10-Year note fell 5 basis points to 2.5786%. The yield on the Two-Year shed 1.23 basis points to 0.4836%. The steep ramp in Treasury prices appears to be gaining momentum, despite numerous calls for a top. The U.S. Dollar was a little stronger today, which tends to be a drag on the stock market. The PowerShares DB US Dollar Index Bullish ETF

, which tracks the performance of the dollar versus a basket of foreign currencies, gained 0.21% to $23.96. The U.S. Dollar Index itself climbed 0.27% to 59.36. The closely watched EUR/USD pair is currently trading at $1.2812. Get free trades at