The US markets ended mostly higher on Thursday as investors cheered stronger-than-expected labor-market data. A report released by the Labor Department showed first-time claims for US unemployment benefits fell by more than expected in the week ended May 22nd. The Labor Department said initial jobless claims slid to 406,000, a decrease of 38,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 444,000. Street had expected jobless claims to dip to 425,000. Jobless claims decreased for the fourth consecutive week, once again falling to their lowest level since hitting 256,000 in the week ended March 14, 2020. The report showed the less volatile four-week moving average also fell to its lowest level in over a year, dropping to 458,750 from the previous week's unrevised average of 504,750.
However, the lackluster performance on the day came as traders continued to look ahead to a highly anticipated reaching on inflation due out Friday. The inflation reading is said to be preferred by the Federal Reserve and could have a significant impact on the outlook for monetary policy. Meanwhile, a separate report from the Commerce Department showed an unexpected pullback in durable goods orders in April, although the decrease was largely due to a steep drop in orders for transportation equipment. The report showed durable goods orders tumbled by 1.3 percent in April after jumping by an upwardly revised 1.3 percent in March. The pullback surprised participants, who had expected durable goods orders to climb by 0.7 percent compared to the 0.8 percent increase that had been reported for the previous month.
Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 141.59 points or 0.41 percent to 34,464.64 and S&P 500 was up by 4.89 points or 0.12 percent to 4,200.88, while Nasdaq fell 1.72 points or 0.01 percent to 13,736.28.