NEW YORK, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stock markets showed minimal movement on Thursday after the Christmas break, as investors digested earlier gains.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 28.77 points, or 0.07 percent, to 43,325.8. The S&P 500 sank 2.45 points, or 0.04 percent, to 6,037.59. The Nasdaq Composite Index shed 10.77 points, or 0.05 percent, to 20,020.36.
Six of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in green, with financials and health leading the gainers by going up 0.21 percent and 0.16 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, consumer discretionary and communication services led the laggards by losing 0.64 percent and 0.36 percent, respectively.
Stock markets are currently facing challenges in continuing the "Santa Claus rally" that began on Tuesday, where the S&P 500 achieved its strongest Christmas Eve showing since 1974, as reported by Bespoke. Both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite are nearing record highs after recovering from a downturn influenced by the Federal Reserve's actions last week.
As Wall Street returns from the holiday season, the usual weekly unemployment claims report has garnered more attention than normal, being the sole labor market data point for this week.
The most recent figures from the U.S. Labor Department revealed that weekly unemployment claims dropped to 219,000, which was lower than the anticipated 223,000. However, the continuing claims indicated a softening in the labor market, increasing by 46,000 in the week ending Dec. 14 to 1.91 million, marking the highest level since November 2021.
On the corporate front, Apple's stock price moved nearer to the 4-trillion-U.S.-dollar valuation threshold in the early trading session after Wedbush analyst Dan Ives raised his price target for the company. Meanwhile, Toyota Motor's shares experienced a significant increase on Thursday, spurred by news that the Japanese automaker intends to double its target for a crucial financial performance metric.
