By Anora Mahmudova and Barbara Kollmeyer, MarketWatch
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- The U.S. stock market was stalled at
record levels on Thursday, as investors assessed the European
Central Bank president Mario Draghi's dovish comments after the
bank left the key interest rate unchanged.
ECB President Mario Draghi reiterated that ECB policy makers are
unanimously committed to using unconventional measures if needed to
maintain price stability. In other words, the ECB could use
outright QE, if deemed necessary.
Read: Recap: ECB's Draghi says risks to eurozone economy skewed
to downside
The S&P 500 (SPX), the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI)
and the Nasdaq Composite (RIXF) were little changed and switched
between small gains and losses.
Better-than-expected jobless claims data as well as productivity
report aided sentiment.
Need to Know: Gold doesn't stand a chance, but utilities do
In economic news, the number of Americans applying for new
jobless benefits lingered below 300,000 for the eighth straight
week amid the lowest level of layoffs in years. U.S. productivity
in the third quarter grew at a 2% annual pace, preliminary data
show, marking the fourth sizable increase in the past five
quarters.
Federal Reserve speakers on the schedule to speak on Thursday:
Chicago Fed President Charles Evans will give welcoming remarks at
17th Annual International Banking Conference at 10:40 a.m. Eastern.
Evans will be a voting member of the Fed policy committee in
2015.
Fed Gov. Jerome Powell will deliver a speech on central clearing
of over-the-counter derivatives at the Chicago Fed's International
Banking Conference at 1:30 p.m. Eastern. And Cleveland Fed
President Loretta Mester, a voting member of the Fed policy
committee, will give a speech in New York at 7:15 p.m. Eastern.
Tesla, Whole Foods among stocks to watch: Tesla (TSLA) was up
after the electric-car maker's results topped expectations, though
it lowered its delivery forecast for 2014.
Whole Foods (WFM) climbed after the upscale grocer reported a
rise in third-quarter earnings and lifted its quarterly
dividend.
The Walt Disney Co. (DIS) , Zynga Inc. (ZNGA) are King Digital
Entertainment PLC (KING) all report earnings on Thursday.
Apple Inc. (AAPL) could draw attention after Palo Alto Networks
Inc. (PANW) said it has discovered a new malware threat that could
threaten millions of Apple Inc. devices.
Other markets:Europe stocks remained lower after the European
Central Bank left rates unchanged.
The Nikkei 225 fell 0.9%, pulling back after gaining more than
10% in the previous five sessions. The losses came despite a
seven-year high for the U.S. dollar (USDJPY) against the yen, which
tapped Yen115 before pulling back.
Oil(CLZ4) prices were steady, while gold(GCZ4) was slightly
lower.
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