The US markets erased previous session’s gains and ended lower on Thursday as traders were worried that the surge in crude oil prices could disrupt the supply chain as the Middle East conflict intensifies. Traders took a note of report released by the Labor Department showed that import prices in the U.S. increased by slightly more than expected in the month of January. The Labor Department said import prices rose by 0.2 percent in January, matching an upwardly revised uptick in December. The street had expected import prices to inch up by 0.1 percent. Further, investors overlooked the report released by the Labor Department showed that labor productivity shot up by 2.8 percent in the fourth quarter after soaring by an upwardly revised 5.2 percent in the third quarter. 

On the sectorial front, airline stocks moved sharply lower due to concerns about the impact of the Middle East conflict, dragging the NYSE Arca Airline Index down by 5.9 percent to a three-month closing low. Besides, steel, telecom, housing and biotechnology stocks also saw significant weakness, while software and oil stocks bucked the downtrend.

Nasdaq decreased 58.49 points or 0.26 percent to 22,748.98, S&P 500 fell 38.79 points or 0.56 percent to 6,830.71 and Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 784.67 points or 1.61 percent to 47,954.74.