* U.S. shares dragged down by Apple, Philip Morris
* Oil prices settle after 3-year peaks on report Saudis want higher prices
* Nickel sees biggest jump in 6-1/2 years on sanctions worry
* Yield curve not as flat (Adds Wall Street close; updates throughout)
By Hilary Russ
NEW YORK, April 19 (Reuters) - Tobacco and tech stocks dragged down Wall Street on Thursday, while oil prices softened and other commodities walked back huge gains after a wild ride.
A bump in long-dated U.S. Treasury yields steepened the curve after two weeks of flattening, and supported a stronger dollar. corporate earnings had boosted shares this week, but a tepid forecast on smartphone demand sent stocks from Apple AAPL.O to chipmakers tumbling on Thursday. company Philip Morris PM.N plunged as much as 17.7 percent after announcing weak results and forecasts, dragging down the S&P 500 index and rival Altria MO.N . .N
Oil prices softened after having spiked to highs not seen since 2014. U.S. crude CLcv1 fell 0.48 percent to $68.14 per barrel and Brent LCOcv1 was last at $73.61, up 0.18 percent on the day. do think we could see $70 pretty quick, but I want to caution that maybe we'll see the market level out a little bit in a few weeks," said Phil Flynn, analyst at PRICE Futures Group in Chicago.
Commodities were buoyed by talk that Saudi Arabia had its sights set on $80 to $100 a barrel of oil. Nickel and aluminium also rose on fears over the impact of U.S. sanctions on Russian aluminium producers, including Rusan 0486.HK .
Nickel CMNI3 initially jumped by the most in 6-1/2 years and aluminium prices CMAL3 reached their highest since 2011. MET/L
But the metals later turned sharply negative, with analysts saying the gains were overdone. Thomson Reuters CoreCommodity total return index .TRCCRBTR opened on Thursday near its highest since mid-2015, before giving back all its gains. O/R
The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI fell 83.18 points, or 0.34 percent, to 24,664.89, the S&P 500 .SPX lost 15.51 points, or 0.57 percent, to 2,693.13 and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC dropped 57.18 points, or 0.78 percent, to 7,238.06.
The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index .FTEU3 rose 0.02 percent and MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe .MIWD00000PUS shed 0.25 percent.
The bullish sentiment in markets comes amid wider optimism about economic growth. The global economy is expected to expand this year at its fastest pace since 2010, the latest Reuters polls of over 500 economists worldwide suggest, but trade protectionism could quickly slow it down. ECILT/WRAP
Investors were also relieved that no new U.S. demands on trade came out of a summit between Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and U.S. President Donald Trump. 10-year notes US10YT=RR last fell 13/32 in price to yield 2.9135 percent, nearly the highest since Feb. 21.
The 30-year bond US30YT=RR last fell 34/32 in price to yield 3.1015 percent, from 3.046 percent late on Wednesday.
The dollar index .DXY rose 0.3 percent against a basket of major currencies as the higher yields and expectations of more Federal Reserve rate increases offset concerns about a trade war and a ballooning U.S. budget deficit. FRX/ MSCI and Nikkei chart
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