Closing Bell: Stocks Get Knocked By Possible Tax Cut Delay

Stocks were sharply lower Thursday as concerns over the timing of tax legislation remained at the front of investors' minds. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell as much as 0.4%, with only a handful of its components finishing the day in the green. The S&P 500 Index slid as much as 0.3% and the Nasdaq struggled to manage a cumbersome tech sector, dipping as much as 0.6%.

Senate Republicans could reportedly delay tax legislation until 2019. The thought of waiting more than a year for tax reform weighed on stocks, which have risen steadily since President Trump was elected on the expectation of more business-friendly tax law. There's also trouble with the House bill. The CBO found that the plan as written would raise the deficit by around $1.7 trillion over a decade. That surpasses the $1.5 trillion threshold needed so the House can vote along party lines, according to Senate rules. Any more than that and the bill would require 60 votes to pass, meaning Republicans would have to court votes across the aisle.

In retail earnings news, Macy's Inc. (M) - Get Report shares jumped by the market close Thursday after the company topped analyst expectations for the third quarter. Earnings totaled 23 cents per share, which topped the forecast of 19 cents per share. The earnings beat was enough to detract from a gruesome 4% decline in same store sales. This was the 11th straight quarter of comp sales declines for Macy's.

Initial jobless claims rose in the past week, though a monthly average fell to its lowest level since March 1973. The number of new claims for unemployment benefits increased by 10,000 to 239,000 in the week ended November 4, according to the Labor Department. Analysts expected a reading of 231,000. The less volatile four-week average dipped by 1,250 to 231,250.

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