US stocks mixed with positive data, pharma drag

By Ovunc Kutlu

ANKARA (AA) - US stocks opened mixed Thursday as positive macroeconomic data was offset by a decline in pharmaceutical shares.

The Dow Jones rose 70 points to 34,300 at 9.40 a.m. EDT (1340GMT) with Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs adding 1.3% each. Financial Select Sector SPDR hit an all-time high at 37.28.

While the S&P 500 was flat at 4,171, the Nasdaq was down 11 to 13,571.

Among US pharmaceutical firms, Pfizer fell 2.9%, while Moderna and Novavax shed 8.7% and 5.5%, respectively.

Jobless claims sank to a new pandemic low, falling 92,000 to 498,000 last week, against an expectation of 540,000, but that was not enough to move investors.

The VIX volatility index was still up 1.5% at 19.44 keeping uncertainty and risks high for investors who turned toward precious metals as safe bets.

Gold gained 1.3%, finally climbing above $1,800 per ounce to trade at $1,807 and silver was also up 2.6% to $27.1.