Decline in first-time unemployment claims lends support to stocks NEW YORK, Dec. 13 (UPI) -- Stocks were mixed Thursday morning, after the Labor Department said first-time unemployment benefit claims dropped by 29,000 in the week. First-time claims dropped to 343,000, the lowest level since early October and close to a multiyear low. In midmorning trading, the Dow Jones industrial average gave up 6.80 points or 0.05 percent to 13,238.65. The tech-heavy Nasdaq index gained 6.73 points or 0.22 percent to 3,020.54. The Standard and Poor's 500 added 0.01 points or less than 0.01 percent to 1,428.49. The 10-year treasury note fell 12/32 to yield 1.745 percent. The euro rose to $1.3098 from Wednesday's $1.3074. The dollar rose to 83.56 yen from 83.27 yen. Japan's Nikkei 225 index rose 1.68 percent, 161.27 points, to 9,742.73.