Trading Day: Wall Street ends modestly lower while US-Iran tensions boost crude prices

(Refiles to fix typo in headline)

By Stephen Culp

NEW YORK, Feb 19 (Reuters) – Wall Street stocks followed the example of their European counterparts by posting modest losses on Thursday as mixed economic data and simmering tensions between the U.S. and Iran kept uncertainties – and crude prices – high.

The U.S. goods trade balance ​hit its widest on record, while a bigger-than-expected drop in initial jobless claims provided some reassurance regarding ‌the health of the labor market.

(By Stephen ​Culp; Editing by Nia Williams)