WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Stocks moved mostly higher over the course of the trading day on the Thursday but gave back ground in the latter part of the session to close roughly flat. The major averages pulled back well off their highs in the final hour of trading before closing narrowly mixed.
While the Nasdaq rose 53.09 points or 0.3 percent to 18,925.73, the Dow edged down 1.35 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 41,859.09 and the S&P 500 slipped 2.60 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 5,842.01.
Stocks showed a lack of direction early in the session but moved to the upside as the day progressed, as traders kept a closer than usual eye on treasury yields.
Treasury yields have recently moved sharply higher due in part to concerns about the fiscal impact of a Republican tax cut bill.
The yield on the benchmark ten-year note reached its highest levels in over three months early in the day but turned lower over the course of the session.
The downturn by treasury yields generated some positive sentiment on Wall Street, but buying interest waned going into the end of the day.
The tax cut bill passed the House in a largely party-line vote early this morning, but analysts warn it could add trillions to the federal government's already massive debt. The plan has sparked fears of an even wider deficit, especially as interest payments continue to soar.
In a post on Truth Social, President Donald Trump called the bill 'arguably the most significant piece of Legislation that will ever be signed in the History of our Country' and urged the Senate to send the bill to his desk as soon as possible.
On the U.S. economic front, a report released by the Labor Department unexpectedly showed a slight decline by first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits in the week ended May 17th.
The Labor Department said initial jobless claims edged down to 227,000, a decrease of 2,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 229,000. The dip surprised economists, who had expected jobless claims to inch up to 230,000.
Meanwhile, a separate report released by the National Association of Realtors showed existing home sales in the U.S. unexpectedly saw further downside in the month of April.
NAR said existing home sales fell by 0.5 percent to an annual rate of 4.00 million in April after plunging by 5.9 percent to a rate of 4.02 million in March. Economists had expected existing home sales to jump by 2.0 percent to a rate of 4.10 million.
Sector News
Reflecting the lackluster close by the broader markets, most of the major sectors ended the day showing only modest moves.
Steel stocks showed a notable move to the downside, however, with the NYSE Arca Steel Index falling by 1.3 percent.
Utilities and gold stocks also saw some weakness on the day, while strength remained visible among airline stocks.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly lower during trading on Thursday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index decreased by 0.8 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index dipped by 0.2 percent.
The major European markets also moved to the downside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index slid by 0.6 percent, the German DAX Index and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index both declined by 0.5 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries moved higher over the course of the session after initially extending yesterday's slump. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, fell 4.3 basis points to 4.553 percent.
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