NEW YORK�(CNNMoney) -- A selloff on Wall Street accelerated late Thursday as investors were not taking any chances ahead of the government's all-important jobs report.

The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) fell 180 points, or 1.4%, about 15 minutes before the closing bell. The S&P 500 (SPX) was down 17 points, or about 13%. The Nasdaq (COMP) sank 20 points, or 0.7%.

The broad-based retreat was sparked by weakness in shares of energy companies as oil prices plunged 8%, falling below $100 a barrel. It was the largest one-day decline since April 2009.

"The selling has been concentrated in the energy sector, and that pulled the entire market down," said Nick Kalivas, vice president of financial research at MF Global.

But the selling gained steam late in the day as investors turned cautious ahead of Friday's report from the Labor Department on hiring and unemployment.

"People are not willing to take a stab on the long side ahead of the payrolls report," said Kalivas.

Friday's report is expected to show employers added 185,000 jobs in April, according to economists surveyed by CNNMoney. The unemployment rate is forecast to remain unchanged at 8.8%.

The government reported Thursday that the number of Americans filing first-time claims for unemployment benefits rose sharply last week. Labor Department officials said the increase was due to seasonal anomalies, but jobless claims have been on the rise recently.

Stocks ended in the red Wednesday, as disappointing reports on jobs and the service sector weighed on investors.

Currencies and commodities: The dollar also rose sharply against the U.K. pound and the Japanese yen.

The stronger dollar helped fuel a selloff in the commodities market.

Oil prices sank $9.44, or 8.6%, to $99.80 a barrel.

Gold futures for June delivery fell $26.30, or 1.7%, to settle at $1,489 an ounce.

Silver futures for July delivery extended their retreat, sliding $2.58, or 6.7%, to $36.80 an ounce. Just a week ago, silver prices were within spitting distance of breaching $50 an ounce.

Companies: Automaker General Motors (GM, Fortune 500) reported a first-quarter net profit of $3.2 billion, its fifth consecutive profitable quarter. Shares fell about 2%.

JDS Uniphase (JDSU) reported mixed quarterly results but issued a sales outlook for the current quarter that topped analysts' forecasts. Shares of the networking equipment maker were up 9%.

Shares of Whole Foods (WFMI, Fortune 500) rose 1% a day after the company reported solid results after Wednesday's closing bell and raised its outlook.

Dow component Kraft Foods (KFT, Fortune 500) reports quarterly results after Thursday's close, with analysts expecting earnings of 47 cents a share.Your monthly gas bill: $368



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