NEW YORK, Jan. 6 (Xinhua) — U.S. stocks finished lower on Thursday, following a major setback they had suffered in the prior session.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 170.64 points, or 0.47 percent, to 36,236.47. The S&P 500 decreased 4.53 points, or 0.10 percent, to 4,696.05. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 19.31 points, or 0.13 percent, to 15,080.86.

Six of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in red, with materials and health care down 1.24 percent and 1.21 percent, respectively, leading the laggards. Energy advanced 2.29 percent, the best-performing group.

U.S.-listed Chinese companies traded mostly higher with nine of the top 10 stocks by weight in the S&P U.S. Listed China 50 index ending the day on an upbeat note.

Investors continued to digest the minutes from the Federal Reserve’s December policy meeting.

Fed officials anticipated earlier and faster interest rate hikes than previously expected as the economy continues to recover and inflation remains elevated, according to the filing released Wednesday.

U.S. equities plunged on Wednesday with the tech-heavy Nasdaq shedding 522.5 points, or 3.34 percent, as a more hawkish Federal Reserve unnerved investors.

On the economic front, U.S. Labor Department reported Thursday that U.S. initial jobless claims, a rough way to measure layoffs, rose 7,000 to 207,000 in the week ending Jan. 1, higher than the 195,000 market estimate.

Elsewhere, the Institute for Supply Management’s services index dropped to 62 percent in December from a record 69.1 percent in November. Economists polled by The Wall Street Journal had forecast the index to fall to 66.8 percent.