Stocks Steady in Early Trading After Latest Economic News

U.S. stocks were stabilizing in early trading on Thursday. as investors digested a record surge in third-quarter GDP after a historic slump earlier this year, and another weekly report on jobless claims that came in better-than-expected. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately added 9.60 points, or 0.04%, to 26,529.55. The S&P 500 rose 15.73 points, or 0.48%, to 3,286.76. The Nasdaq Composite rose 102.38 points, or 0.93%, to 11,107.24.

Oil futures fell sharply on Thursday, extending this week’s slide as rising COVID-19 cases sparked tighter restrictions on activity in Europe and underlined worries about the outlook for the U.S. and global economic recovery. West Texas Intermediate crude for December delivery fell $1.49, or 4%, to $35.90 a barrel, while December Brent crude was off $1.47, or 3.7%, at $38.15 a barrel.

The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits slipped further in the latest week and hit the lowest levels since the pandemic began in mid-March, government data released Thursday showed. New claims fell by 40,000 to 751,000 in the seven days ended Oct. 24.

U.S. economic activity surged at a record clip for the July through September period, as an initial easing of virus-related lockdowns allowed business activity to return after a historic slump. 3Q GDP, annualized quarter-over-quarter: 33.1% vs. 32.0% expected, -31.4% in the second quarter.