Wall Street. Major U.S. stock-indexes demonstrate moderate declines

Major U.S. stock-indexes demonstrated moderate declines amid disappointing data from the U.S. Labor Department, as well as mixed earnings reports that are unlikely to help to clarify the strength of the economy. In addition, investors continued to assess the implications of the Federal Reserve's most recent statement.

U.S. Labor Department revealed that the number of people claiming unemployment benefits grew to to 266,000 for the week ended July 22. That was above analysts' expectations of 260,000.

Focus is on Facebook (FB) and Ford Motor (F). Facebook posted its financials after yesterday's session. The company's results significantly exceeded analysts' expectations. Facebook's shares rose 0.52%.

The quarterly results of Ford Motor (F) disappointed investors, as posted profit missed analysts' expectations. The Ford's shares plunged by 9.65%. The shares of other automakers were also under pressure, with General Motors (GM) tumbling by 3.76% and Fiat Chrysler (FCAU) falling by 5.45%.

Investors also expect the release of quarterly results of Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) and Alphabet Inc. (GOOG), which are set to be published after the market's close today.

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Most of Dow stocks in negative area (22 of 30). Top loser - The Boeing Company (BA, -2.46%). Top gainer - Apple Inc. (AAPL, +0.74%).

Most of S&P sectors in negative area. Top loser - Basic Materials (-0.65%). Top gainer - Conglomerates (+0.82%).

At the moment:

Dow 18321.00 -69.00 -0.38%

S&P 500 2156.25 -4.25 -0.20%

Nasdaq 100 4696.00 -11.75 -0.25%

Crude Oil 41.08 -0.84 -2.00%

Gold 1340.70 +6.20 +0.46%

U.S. 10yr 1.51 -0.01