US markets mixed at the close

U.S. stocks closed mixed Thursday as worries persisted that Greece may be forced to leave the eurozone and economic data from Washington were uneven. Financial leaders in Europe agreed this week to work on individual contingency plans for a possible exit of Greece from the 17-member currency region, which would be an unprecedented step. At a summit meeting that ended late Wednesday, leaders failed to agree on a new proposal to create a region-wide euro bond. The Labor Department in Washington said Thursday there were 2,000 fewer first-time jobless claims filed in the week, with the total dropping to 370,000 initial claims. The Commerce Department reported durable goods orders rose 0.2 percent in April to $215.5 billion, which was short of the 0.7 percent increase economists expected. By close of trading on Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 33.60 points, or 0.27 percent, at 12,529.75. The Standard & Poor's 500 added 1.82 points, or 0.14 percent, to 1,320.68. The Nasdaq Composite shed 10.74 points, 0.38 percent, to 2,839.38. On the New York Stock Exchange, 1,760 stocks rose and 1,274 declined on a volume of 3.5 billion shares traded. The benchmark 10-year treasury note rose 1/32 to 1.777 percent. The euro fell to $1.2542 from Wednesday's $1.2582. Against the yen, the dollar rose to 79.56 from Wednesday's 79.49 yen. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index was flat, gaining 0.08 percent, 6.78 points, to 8,563.38. In London, the FTSE 100 index rose 1.59 percent, 83.64, to 5,350.05.