U.S. stocks opened little changed on Thursday with the final session of the year under way. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately declined 26.16 points, or 0.1%, to 30,398. The S&P 500 edged down 1.40 points, or 0.04%, to 3,730.64. The Nasdaq Composite fell 23.84 points, or 0.19%, to 12,846.16.
Oil futures traded modestly lower Thursday, with crude set to end 2020 down by more than 20% for the year that saw demand slammed by the COVID-19 pandemic which restricted travel and business and consumer activity. West Texas Intermediate crude for February delivery was down 43 cents, or 0.9%, to $47.97 a barrel. March Brent crude was down 50 cents, or 1%, at $51.13 a barrel.
Jobless claims unexpectedly fell last week but still held at a historically elevated level. Initial jobless claims filed traditionally through the states slipped by 17,000 to 787,000 in the seven days ended Dec. 26, the government said Thursday.
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