U.S. stocks closed lower Thursday while Wall Street prepared for the start of earnings season. In U.S. economic news, weekly jobless claims rose less than expected while import prices increased last month, boosted by higher oil prices. In corporate news, major banks JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, and Bank of America all are scheduled to report quarterly results Friday before the bell. The dollar fell 0.4 percent against a basket of currencies. Light sweet crude oil for February delivery rose 89 cents to $53.14 per barrel on the New York Mercantile, while gold futures declined 90 cents to $1,195.70 an ounce. The Dow Jones industrial average lost 63.62, or 0.32 percent, to 19,890.66. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index dropped 4.88, or 0.21 percent, to 2,270.44. The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite index decreased 16.16, or 0.29 percent, to 5,547.49.
