* Goldman Sachs, Citigroup down after results
* Energy stocks rise after EIA inventory data
* Jobless claims fall to nine-month low
* Dow dips 0.1 pct, S&P off 0.2 pct, Nasdaq off 0.4 pct (Updates to midday, changes byline)
By Ryan Vlastelica
NEW YORK, Oct 15 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks slipped on Thursday after Goldman Sachs and Citigroup reported quarterly results, but losses were limited after positive oil inventory data helped energy shares.
Goldman's and Citigroup's results, while better than
expected, fell short of the lofty standard set by JPMorgan
Chase
Goldman's earnings nearly quadrupled, largely due to strong trading results. Citigroup's third-quarter loss was narrower than expected, but the company took $8 billion in credit losses.
"JPMorgan's results raised the bar for expectations and that spread to a number of financials," said Alan Gayle, senior investment strategist at RidgeWorth Investments in Richmond, Virginia.
"The market was looking for strong results and it got that and more, but it decided to sell on the good news at Goldman."
Goldman shares fell 2.1 percent to $188.40 while Citigroup shed 5.4 percent to $4.74. The KBW Banks index lost 1.6 percent while the S&P Financial index was the top percentage decliner among S&P sectors, down 1.4 percent.
Crude oil rose 2.7 percent to $77.19 per barrel, erasing early losses after data from the Energy Information Administration showed gasoline and distillate inventories fell sharply in the last week.
The data limited losses in the markets and lifted the S&P Energy index 0.9 percent. Chevron Corp shares gained 1.1 percent to $76.26.
The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 12.47 points, or 0.12 percent, to 10,003.24. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index fell 1.89 points, or 0.17 percent, to 1,090.13. The Nasdaq Composite Index lost 7.60 points, or 0.35 percent, to 2,166.61.
Nokia Corp results also dented confidence in the earnings season. Shares sank 12 percent to $13.61 on the New York Stock Exchange after it unexpectedly reported a third-quarter loss.
The results overshadowed economic data that added evidence to the argument that the economy was on the mend.
The number of new workers filing new claims for jobless benefits fell to a nine-month low, while the September Consumer Price Index rose marginally, as expected.
The next wave of quarterly results comes after the market closes, with such tech bellwethers as International Business Machines Corp, Google Inc and Advanced Micro Devices scheduled to report.
IBM, a Dow component, fell 1.2 percent to $126.87 on the NYSE, while Google was down 0.7 percent at $531.71 on Nasdaq, and AMD dropped 2.4 percent to $6.10, also in NYSE trading. (Editing by Jan Paschal)