New York - Wall Street extended its latest losing streak to three days on Thursday.

The selloff came amid a report showing new US claims for unemployment benefits exceeding expectations. Meanwhile, fears of downgraded government credit ratings in Britain and perhaps even in the US fueled investor pessimism.

US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner told Bloomberg Television Thursday that it was "critically important" for the US government to reach a budget deficit reduction target of 3 per cent of gross domestic product.

"It's very important that this Congress and this president put in place policies that will bring those deficits down to a sustainable level over the medium term," he said.

The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 129.91 points, or 1.54 per cent, to 8,292.13. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 Index fell 15.14 points, or 1.68 per cent, to
888.33. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 32.59 points, or 1.89 per cent, to 1,695.25.

The US currency lost ground against the euro to 71.911 euro cents from 72.67 euro cents on Wednesday. The dollar slipped against the Japanese currency to 94.24 yen from 94.88 yen on Wednesday.(dpa)