NEW YORK — Investors pulled away from stocks after an unexpected drop in home sales and a slide in oil prices fanned worries about the pace of the economy’s recovery.
Stocks fell for a second day Thursday after the National Association of Realtors said sales of existing homes dropped 2.7 percent in August after jumping 7.2 percent in July. Economists had expected sales would post their fifth straight monthly increase.
The market climbed in morning trading following a surprise drop in the number of people seeking unemployment benefits. The housing numbers upended that advance, however, and stocks never recovered.
The Dow Jones industrial average ended with a loss of 41 points to bring its two-day drop to 122 points.
Financial stocks and homebuilders also lost ground after the housing numbers.
A stronger dollar weighed on the market by pushing commodity prices lower. That hit stocks of energy and materials companies.
Technology shares could see pressure today after disappointing quarterly results from BlackBerry maker Research in Motion. The company warned that revenue for the current quarter will fall short of analysts’ expectations. The stock fell 9 percent in after-hours electronic trading.
Thursday’s retreat came a day after investors looked past a more upbeat assessment of the economy from the Federal Reserve and worried about what will happen once the government starts to wind down its economic- stimulus efforts.
The Dow fell 41.11, or 0.4 percent, to 9,707.44. The Standard & Poor’s 500 fell 10.09, or 1.0 percent, to 1,050.78, and the Nasdaq composite fell 23.81, or 1.1 percent, to 2,107.61.
The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 11.62, or 1.9 percent, to 601.75.
Commodities extended their losses from Wednesday as the dollar rose. The currency has weakened this year amid massive government stimulus programs and low interest rates, which has been a boon to commodities. Commodities are priced in U.S. dollars, and a weak greenback makes them more appealing to foreign buyers.
Oil dropped $3.08, or 4.4 percent, to settle at $65.89 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Gold ended below $1,000 for the first time in two weeks. Silver also posted a big drop.
