Dawn Chorus: Mixed economic data keeps Wall Street in tight range

US stocks closed almost flat on Thursday as mixed economic data and a cautious forecast from economic bellwether FedEx overshadowed gains in technology shares before Apple Inc.’s release of the iPad tablet computer in China.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained 22 points, or 0.21%, to 10,595. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index dropped 0.4 points, or 0.04%, to 1,125. The Nasdaq Composite Index gained two points, or 0.08%, to 2,303.

While initial jobless claims fell 3,000 to 450,000 last week, the Philadelphia Fed’s manufacturing index remained in the negative for a second month in a row.

In a separate report, the Labour Department said the seasonally adjusted index for prices paid at the farm and factory gate rose 0.4%, the largest increase in five months, after gaining 0.2% in July. Analysts polled by Reuters had expected producer prices to rise 0.3% last month.

Investors were disappointed after FedEx, often seen as a bellwether for global trade, said that its first-quarter profit of $1.20 per share just missed the average estimate of $1.21 per share and it would cut 1,700 jobs. FedEx’s stocks plunged 3.8%.

Apple led technology stocks up 0.7% ahead of the release of its iPad tablet computer in China. Research in Motion rose 2.1% during the session, and continued to rise after releasing better than expected earnings. Oracle gained 3% after earnings beat expectations.

In Europe, shares dipped on Thursday amid concerns that high US jobless numbers, despite falls in weekly claims, and disappointing UK retail sales could signal a slowdown in the pace of economic recovery. FTSEurofirst 300 index ended 0.8% lower at 1,076. Britain's FTSE 100, Germany's DAX and France's CAC-40 lost 0.2% to 0.5%.

In current trading, Asian shares rose on Friday as a weaker yen bolstered the outlook for Japan’s exporters and metal prices gained.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 Stock Average increased 0.83% to 9,589 as of 11:00 a.m. in Tokyo. The broader Topix added 0.7% to 850.  The MSCI Asia Pacific Index fell 0.8% to 123. Shanghai Composite Index was up 0.2% at 2,608 and S&P/ASX 200 Index of Australia was trading 0.53% higher at 4,630.