REUTERS/Carlos Barria
In early trade on Thursday, the Dow was down 52 points, the S&P 500 was down 6 points, and the Nasdaq was down 16.
On Thursday morning, bonds yield fell all around the world, with the yield on the US 10-Year Treasury note falling to below 2.3%, its lowest level of the year.
In economic news, the latest report on weekly initial jobless claims showed that claims fell to their lowest four-week average level since February 2006. This week's report also beat expectations, with initial claims coming in at 287,000 against expectations for 295,000.
In stock news, activist hedge fund investor Carl Icahn published an open letter to Apple CEO Tim Cook, in which he outlined that he thinks the company is undervalued and that the stock is worth $203 per share.