04:13 PM EST, 01/16/2025 (MT Newswires) -- US benchmark equity indexes ended lower Thursday as retail sales growth slowed in December and Q4 earnings season got underway.

* US retail sales grew by 0.4% in December, versus the 0.8% increase in November and a 0.6% gain expected in a survey compiled by Bloomberg. Excluding a 0.7% increase in motor vehicle sales, retail sales were up 0.4% compared with an expected 0.5% gain. That followed a 0.2% gain in November. After removing motor vehicles and gasoline station sales, retail sales were up 0.3% in December compared with a 0.2% gain in November.

* Initial jobless claims increased by 14,000 to 217,000 in the week ended Jan. 11, above a level of 210,000 expected, but the four-week moving average fell by 750 to 212,750, a second straight decrease. Insured claims fell by 18,000 to 1.859 million in the week ended Jan. 4.

* February West Texas Intermediate crude oil closed down $1.33 to settle at $78.71 per barrel, while March Brent crude, the global benchmark, was last seen down $0.70 to $81.33 as the ceasefire deal reached between Israel and the Hamas militant group in Gaza eased geopolitical risk.

* Morgan Stanley ( MS ) reported better-than-expected Q4 results as increased deal activity and initial public offerings buoyed the company's investment banking business. Shares climbed 4.2%.

* Shares of U.S. Bancorp ( USB ) slumped 5.2% after the company reported Q4 revenue that missed expectations. Meanwhile, UnitedHealth Group ( UNH ) shares dropped 6% after the company reported lower-than-expected Q4 revenue.