Wall Street experienced a mixed outcome on Thursday, with major stock indexes showing varying performance as some leading technology and communications stocks countered gains in other areas of the market. The S&P 500 index recorded a slight decline of less than 0.1%, marking its first dip after three consecutive days of increases. Meanwhile, the Dow Jones Industrial Average saw a modest uptick of 0.1%, whereas the Nasdaq composite experienced a decrease of 0.1%. Positive contributions from retail and healthcare equities helped to mitigate the overall market losses. Trading activity was somewhat subdued as U.S. markets resumed operations after the Christmas holiday. Additionally, the Labor Department revealed that claims for unemployment benefits in the U.S. remained unchanged last week, although the number of continuing claims reached its highest point in three years. In the bond sector, Treasury yields experienced a decline.

As for specific figures from Thursday:
The S&P 500 decreased by 2.45 points, or 0.04%, settling at 6,037.59.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 28.77 points, or 0.1%, finishing at 43,325.80.
The Nasdaq composite fell by 10.77 points, or 1%, closing at 19,764.89.
The Russell 2000 index, which represents smaller companies, increased by 20.34 points, or 0.9%, to reach 2,280.19.

Looking at performance for the week:
The S&P 500 saw an increase of 106.74 points, or 1.80%.
The Dow was up 485.54 points, or 1.1%.
The Nasdaq experienced a rise of 447.76 points, or 2.3%.
The Russell 2000 recorded an increase of 37.82 points, or 1.7%.

In terms of year-to-date performance:
The S&P 500 has risen by 1,267.76 points, reflecting a growth of 26.6%.
The Dow has climbed by 5,636.26 points, which corresponds to a 15% increase.
The Nasdaq has surged by 5,009.01 points, resulting in a 33.4% gain.
Lastly, the Russell 2000 index has experienced an increase of 253.12 points, or 12.5%.