US open: Markets slide after Wednesday's rally

US markets declined slightly on Thursday, as companies began reporting quarterly earnings and investors looked intent to book profits after yesterday’s rally.

“What we’re seeing is profit taking from yesterday’s trading ,where we saw nearly 2% gains, and I think that was a bit overdone,” said Craig Erlam, market analyst at Alpari U.K.

“We’ve seen massive rallies off those Fed minutes, which weren’t exactly the most dovish thing we’ve ever heard, and there was no real change in policy.

Government data released on Thursday showed the number of people who applied for jobless benefits in the first week of October remained below 300,000 for the fourth consecutive week, the first time it has happened in over eight years.

According to Labor Department data, the number of initial jobless claims in the week ended 4 October declined by 1,000 to a seasonally adjusted 287,000, with jobless claims now 21% lower than 12 months ago.

The monthly unemployment rate fell to 5.9% in September, with the rate edging below 6% for the first time since 2008, while the average of new claims in September dropped by 7,250 to 287,750, reaching the lowest level since February 2006.

In corporate news, Pepsi rose before the bell, as the soft-drinks maker reported third quarter profit and sales that exceeded expectations, while Alcoa climbed early on after its third quarter earnings beat estimates.

Apple gained slightly despite a Wall Street Journal report that the Silicon Valley giant has delayed plans to produce a larger version of the iPad until early 2015.

Google dropped slightly after news emerged that the firm’s tax deal in France is being challenged.

Gold prices surged to over $21 an ounce, while West Texas intermediate oil was in decline for a third consecutive session and was trading just under $87 a barrel.

The yield on 10-year Treasury notes was off by 1 basis point at 2.32%, while the 30-year Treasury yield lost one basis point to 3.06% and the five-year note was lower by two basis points to 1.56%.

The dollar was in retreat against the pound and the yen, but it registered a marginal gain against the euro early on.