Stocks tick up as jobless claims recede

Stocks closed flat a day after the Dow Jones industrial average ended trading above 18,000 for the first time. Trading ended early Wednesday ahead of the Christmas holiday. Markets will reopen on Friday.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 6 points, or 0.3 percent, to 18,030. The Standard & Poor's 500 stayed level on the day, closing at 2,081, while the Nasdaq composite added 8 points to 4,773.

The Dow and the S&P 500 notched all-time highs the first two days of the week. The indexes finished higher in the five trading days through Tuesday, recovering the last of the ground they lost in an early-December slump.

The Labor Department reported that the number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits dropped last week to 280,000. That's the lowest level in seven weeks and the latest sign that the U.S. economy and job market are steadily improving. In the first 11 months of this year, employers have added 2.65 million jobs. That already makes 2014 the best year for hiring since 1999.

The report comes a day after the Commerce Department said that the economy grew at an annual rate of 5 percent in the July-September quarter, the fastest pace in 11 years.

The unemployment benefits data show steady improvement in the labor market, which is positive news for the economy, noted Chris Gaffney, a senior market strategist at EverBank Wealth Management.

"But we're still giddy after yesterday's GDP [report]," he said. "That's what's mainly driving this market."

Six of the 10 sectors in the S&P 500 rose, led by utilities stocks, which are up 26.1 percent this year. Investors often turn to utilities as a safe haven during periods of market volatility.

"Possibly, people just want to get a bit more defensive in respect to their gains going into the end of the year," Gaffney said.

The energy sector was the biggest decliner in the S&P 500. That sector has fallen 9.5 percent this year as the slide in oil prices has deepened.

Benchmark U.S. crude fell $1.49 to $55.63 per barrel. Oil prices have been a major focus in markets over the past few weeks as they have fallen by about a half since the summer.

U.S. government bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 2.30 percent.