Stocks Fall on Energy Shares, Consumer Worries

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The Dow industrials six-day winning streak came to a halt on Thursday as a drop in oil prices pulled energy stocks lower and a guarded outlook from Wal-Mart fanned worries about consumer spending.

Stocks were also undermined by a U.S. dollar rally, as its safe-haven appeal rose after several policymakers around the world warned the economic recovery was fragile.

With earnings season coming to a close, and looking beyond the Federal Reserve's meeting last week, investors searched for new catalysts to determine the market's direction.

"As the S&P 500 has gone above 1,100, it has had a hard time holding on to gains," said Quincy Krosby, market strategist at Prudential Financial in Shelton, Connecticut.

Both the Dow industrials and the S&P 500 hit 13-month closing highs on Wednesday.

Oil futures settled down 3 percent below $77 per barrel as data confirmed crude and refined product inventories rose last week. The S&P energy sector index fell 2 percent, with shares of Hess Corp down 2.5 percent to $55.95 and Occidental Petroleum Corp down 1.6 percent to $81.81.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> fell 93.79 points, or 0.91 percent, to 10,197.47. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> dropped 11.27 points, or 1.03 percent, to 1,087.24. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> lost 17.88 points, or 0.83 percent, to 2,149.02.

"In order to get to the next level up, (the market) does need a strong catalyst, and most of the time the stronger dollar has been a negative," Krosby said.

Shares of insurers and banks were among top laggards, with the S&P financial sector index <.GSPF> down 1.8 percent.

Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer, reported a higher quarterly profit and its shares rose 0.5 percent to $53.24, but it forecast earnings for the key holiday quarter that could miss Wall Street's consensus estimate.