Stocks Mixed in Early Trading after Jobless Data

U.S. stocks were mixed in the early trading on Thursday after new data underscored another surge in U.S. weekly unemployment claims and a slump in new-home construction. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately fell 151.05 points, or 0.64%, to 23,353.30. The S&P 500 advanced 1.34 points, or 0.05%, to 2,784.70. The Nasdaq Composite rose 68.52 points, or 0.82%, to 8,461.69.

Oil futures traded higher Thursday, bouncing a day after the U.S. benchmark closed below $20 a barrel for the first time since 2002 on the back of a global glut in crude created by the shutdown of major economies in the effort to contain the COVID-19 pandemic. West Texas Intermediate crude for May delivery rose 19 cents, or 1%, to $20.06 a barrel. June Brent crude jumped $1.20, or 4.3%, to $28.89 a barrel.

New jobless claims topped five million for the week ended April 11, bringing the four-week total to more than 22 million. Still, equity traders mostly looked past the data, which at least showed a decline in new claims over the prior week’s 6.6 million.

Builders started construction on new homes in the U.S. at a pace of 1.22 million in March, the Commerce Department said Thursday. This represented a 22% decrease from a revised 1.56 million in February.