WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - After failing to sustain an initial upward move, stocks have shown a lack of direction in early trading on Thursday. The major averages are now lingering near the unchanged line after ending the previous session mixed.
The choppy trading on Wall Street comes as traders digest a mixed batch of U.S. economic data as well as the latest earnings new.
Early buying interest was generated by a report from the Labor Department showing that initial jobless claims unexpectedly fell to an eight-year low in the week ended July 19th.
However, stocks gave back some ground following the release of a separate Commerce Department report showing a bigger than expected drop in new home sales in June.
Earnings news also remains in focus, as traders digest mixed quarterly results from a number of well known companies.
Housing stocks are seeing notable weakness on the heels of the disappointing new home sales data, with the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index down by 2 percent. D.R. Horton (DHI) is posting a steep loss after reporting lower third quarter earnings.
Oil service, gold, and biotech stocks are also seeing notable weakness in early strength, while considerable strength is visible among computer hardware and networking stocks.
Currently, the major averages are turning in another mixed performance. While the Nasdaq is down 2.71 points or 0.1 percent at 4,470.99, the Dow is up 13.22 points or 0.1 percent at 17,099.85 and the S&P 500 is up 1.16 points or 0.1 percent at 1,988.17.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX