Orders for durable goods in the United States rose in December by less than anticipated and U.S. jobless claims fell last week by less than analysts had expected, according to data released on Thursday.
The number of workers filing new claims for jobless benefits fell by 8,000 to 470,000 in the week that ended Jan. 23, the U.S. Department of Labor reported. Economists, however, had expected the claims to fall by 32,000.
The Commerce Department, meanwhile, said that manufacturers' orders for durable goods rose in December by 0.3% to a seasonally adjusted $167.91 billion, after analysts had projected a 2.0% increase. The department also revised November’s orders from 0.2% to -0.4%.
However, data released Thursday on monthly core durable goods orders was better than expected, as such orders rose by 0.9% in December, as opposed to the forecasted 0.4%.
U.S. futures pointed to a mixed opening in the wake of the data and as Wall Street digested an influx of earnings reports. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures indicated a rise of 0.42%, S&P 500 futures pointed to an increase of 0.40% and Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a decline of 0.49%.