Major US stock indices closed lower Thursday. The decline in equities followed the US Labour Department's weekly report of new unemployment claims by workers, which were at a three- month high. Wall Street analysts had widely expected a decline, but the initial jobless filings rose last week by 19,000 to 479,000. The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 5.45 points, or 0.05 per cent, to 10,674.98. The broader Standard and Poor's 500 Index was off 1.43 points, or 0.13 per cent, to 1,125.81. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index lost 10.51 points, or 0.46 per cent, to 2,293.06. The US currency dipped to 75.8 euro cents from 76 euro cents on Wednesday. The dollar fell against the yen to 85.84 yen from 86.26 yen.
