NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Stocks slipped Thursday, capping a tough quarter, as spiking oil prices unnerved investors ahead of Friday's March jobs report.

The Dow Jones industrial average (down 37.17 to 10,503.76, Charts) and the Nasdaq composite (Research) both fell about 0.3 percent.

The broader Standard & Poor's 500 (down 0.82 to 1,180.59, Charts) index ended the session little changed.

A powerful rally Wednesday gave the 30-share Dow its biggest gains in four months. But the market struggled Thursday, the last day of the first quarter.

The end of the quarter can sometimes be a plus for stocks as money managers seek to put cash to work before squaring their books for the period. But Thursday's light trading volume and the upcoming March jobs report forestalled any big moves.

It's been a tough quarter for the market as investors try to rationalize buying stocks with corporate profit growth slowing and interest rates rising. Fears of inflation have been heightened by the recent spike in crude oil, which hit an all-time trading high of $57.60 two weeks ago.

For the quarter, the Dow 30 and the S&P 500 both fell around 2.6 percent, while the Nasdaq lost around 8.1 percent.

"It's been a rough quarter for many people, because of rising interest rates and the move in oil prices," said Sarat Sethi, portfolio manager at Douglas C. Lane & Associates. "But it also exemplifies that investors need to look outside the obvious places to invest."

People with higher exposure to energy stocks did well, he noted, while people with higher exposure to financials, to retail and to certain tech sectors had a harder time.

Among individual sectors, oil stocks were the best performers in the quarter. The Amex Oil index rose more than 17 percent and the Commodities Research Bureau (CRB) index rose more than 10 percent.

On the downside, airlines, Internets and biotechs were the worst performers. The Amex Airline index tumbled 18 percent, the Goldman Sachs Internet index lost more than 13 percent and the Morgan Stanley Biotech index sank 21 percent.

Thursday was also the last day of the month. For March, the Dow 30 and the Nasdaq both lost 2.5 percent, while the S&P 500 lost just under 2 percent.

On Friday, the monthly jobs report is expected to show that employers added 220,000 jobs to payrolls in March, after adding 262,000 in February. The unemployment rate, generated by a separate survey, is expected to have fallen to 5.3 percent from 5.4 percent.

Although less influential than the jobs report, Friday also brings the first read on consumer sentiment from the University of Michigan, a read on construction spending in February, and the Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing index for March.

Oil jumped after analysts at Goldman Sachs predicted crude oil would spike to $105 a barrel in the next few years.

U.S. light crude oil for May delivery rose $1.41 to settle at $55.40 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, a gain of more than 2 percent, after edging lower Wednesday.

Treasury prices rose, lowering yields. The dollar slipped versus other major currencies. Gold rose.

The morning brought a slew of mixed economic news, which added to the session's uncertainty.

Among the reports: personal income and spending rose modestly, while weekly jobless claims showed a surprise jump. The Chicago PMI, a regional read on manufacturing, was surprisingly strong, while factory orders rose less than expected.

"You've got oil prices and the economic news having an impact today," said Tim Heekin, head of stock trading at Thomas Weisel Partners. "Obviously tomorrow it's all about unemployment. That's the wild card."

In corporate news, Elan (down $3.74 to $3.24, Research) and Biogen Idec (down $3.84 to $34.51, Research) both sank after the companies said a third patient taking their suspended multiple sclerosis drug Tysabri had contracted a rare neurological disease, making it unlikely the drug will return to market soon, if at all.

American International Group (down $1.75 to $55.41, Research) fell another 3 percent after acknowledging accounting errors Wednesday. The insurer is being investigated by the Securities & Exchange Commission and the New York Attorney General's office.

On Thursday, the SEC subpoenaed the firm's longtime auditors, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Reuters reported.

Shares of orthopedic device makers, among the best performers in the health-care industry last year, sank Thursday due to a broad federal investigation into contracts with surgeons that could change sales practices industry wide.

Stryker Corp. (down $2.82 to $44.61, Research) and Biomet Inc. (Research) shares fell after announcing that they had received subpoenas from the U.S. Attorney's office in Newark.

The spike in oil prices gave a lift to oil stocks, sending the Philadelphia Oil Services (Charts) index up 3.1 percent.

Elsewhere, J.C. Penney (up $4.02 to $51.92, Research) shares rallied after Women's Wear Daily reported that the department store chain could be a buyout target. The company declined to comment.

Shares in Western Digital (up $1.58 to $12.75, Research) rose after the company boosted its third-quarter outlook due to stronger consumer demand for personal computers and digital recorders.

Market breadth was positive. On the New York Stock Exchange, advancers beat decliners three to two on volume of 1.72 billion shares. On the Nasdaq, winners narrowly edged losers on volume of 1.76 billion shares.

Personal income rose 0.3 percent in February after falling a revised 2.5 percent in January, the Commerce Department reported early Thursday. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com thought income would increase 0.4 percent.

Personal spending was up 0.5 percent in the month, in line with estimates and following an increase of 0.1 percent in January.

The PCE price index, the report's inflation gauge that's said to be closely watched by Fed policy-makers, climbed 0.3 percent, following a gain of 0.2 percent in January. Economists thought that the index, which measures prices paid by consumers, would advance just 0.2 percent.

A separate report showed new jobless claims jumped to 350,000 last week while economists thought claims would fall.

Factory orders climbed 0.3 percent in February after being flat in January. Economists thought orders would rise 0.5 percent.

The Chicago PMI rose to 69.2 in March from 62.7 in February versus forecasts for a decline.

Treasury prices rose, lowering the yield on the 10-year note to 4.48 percent from 4.55 percent late Wednesday. Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions.

In currency trading, the dollar fell versus the euro and the yen.

COMEX gold rose $1.60 to settle at $431.10 an ounce.

In global trade, Asian-Pacific markets ended higher and European markets ended little changed.