04:31 PM EST, 02/27/2025 (MT Newswires) -- US benchmark equity indexes closed lower Thursday as the markets digested the potential 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada, which are to be enforced next week.

The Nasdaq Composite dropped 2.8% to 18,544, while the S&P 500 fell 1.6% to 5,861. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.5% to 43,239. Among sectors, technology was the steepest decliner, while financials led the gainers.

US Treasury yields gained, with the 10-year rate rising 2 basis points to 4.27% and the two-year rate dropped 1.1 basis points to 4.06%.

April West Texas Intermediate crude oil gained 2.2% to $70.12 a barrel Thursday.

In economic news, weekly initial jobless claims in the US increased to 242,000 in the third week of February, up 22,000 compared to a week earlier, according to a report by the US Department of Labor.

Weekly applications for unemployment insurance remain above market expectations of 221,000, while the four-week moving average increased by 8,500 to 224,000

Real GDP growth in the US slowed to 2.3% in Q4 from 3.1% in Q3 as gains in consumer and government spending were partially offset by lower investment, according to a second estimate released Thursday by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. For the full year, GDP rose 2.8%, driven by increases in spending, investment, government expenditures, and exports.

In company news, Warner Bros. Discovery ( WBD ) was up over 5.6% after its Global Consumer Products division signed a multi-year global licensing agreement with Mattel ( MAT ) for DC stories and characters.

Teleflex ( TFX ) fell 22% after it agreed to acquire most of Biotronik's Vascular Intervention business for about 760 million euros ($793.1 million) in cash. Teleflex ( TFX ) also said it plans to separate its urology, acute care, and OEM segments into a publicly traded company.

Nvidia ( NVDA ) shares fell 8%. The company's fiscal Q4 results on Wednesday had "the smallest revenue beat in two years" and were "underwhelming for investors used to much bigger upside surprises," Deutsche Bank said in a note.

Payoneer (PAYO) shares fell 14% after its core earnings outlook for 2025 indicated a year-over-year decline.

Gold dropped 1.6% to $2,885.2 per troy ounce, while silver was down 2.4% to $31.81 per troy ounce.