U.S. stocks opened lower, with discount retail giant Walmart weighing on the market after the company issued a weaker-than-expected outlook.

Walmart shares slumped 7% after the retail giant topped earnings estimates for the last three months of the year but expected a slowdown in earnings growth this fiscal year. The retailer serves as a barometer for consumer spending due to its scale and commanding market share of the U.S. retail industry. Investors watch its earnings closely for hints about U.S. economic health.

Walmart said it hasn't factored new tariffs into its outlook since it's not sure President Donald Trump's tariffs will go into effect next month, but it's cautious about the global outlook. Although about two-thirds of what Walmart sells is made, grown or assembled in the U.S., and it said it has experience navigating tariffs, it said it wouldn't be completely immune to broad tariffs on Mexican and Canadian goods.

Around 10 a.m. ET, S&P 500 index slipped 0.6%, or 36.77 points, to 6,107.38 after reaching a record high on Wednesday. The blue-chip Dow fell 0.67%, or 274.41 points, to 44,353.18; and the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 0.92%, or 183.69 points, to 19,872.57. The benchmark 10-year yield eased to 4.503%.

Gold prices continued to soar to record highs. Gold is seen as a safe-haven during times of economic and geopolitical uncertainty.

Trump said on Wednesday he will announce fresh tariffs over the next month or sooner, adding lumber and forest products to previously announced plans to impose duties on imported cars, semiconductors and pharmaceuticals.

Constant tariff threats are keeping investors and the Federal Reserve on tenterhooks. Most economists say if all the tariffs Trump has threatened come to fruition, they will reignite inflation, cutting the chances for more Fed rate cuts. Already, many economists have trimmed or erased odds for additional rate cuts this year.

Gold prices were last up 0.52% at $2,951.30 per ounce. The yellow metal has gained about 12% so far this year.

Markets shrugged off a slightly larger-than-expected rise in weekly jobless claims. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits rose 5,000 to a seasonally adjusted 219,000 for the week ended February 15, the Labor Department said on Thursday. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 215,000 claims for the latest week.

Economists said the weekly jobs data don't yet reflect the mass layoffs of federal government workers.

"It is too soon for these layoffs to be reflected in the claims data, but we will be monitoring the claims figures in the weeks ahead for federal workers for an indication of the magnitude of these layoffs," said Nancy Vanden Houten, lead U.S. economist at Oxford Economics

Other corporate movers, aside from Walmart, include:

Bitcoin prices edged up after Trump emphasized again at a conference Wednesday his commitment to making America the world's crypto hub.

Bitcoin was last up 0.73% at $97,112.09.

Medora Lee is a money, markets, and personal finance reporter at USA TODAY. You can reach her at [email protected] and subscribe to our free Daily Money newsletter for personal finance tips and business news every Monday through Friday morning. 

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Walmart outlook weighs on stock market. Gold touches record high.