Toronto stocks pulled back from earlier gains but still closed higher on Thursday. The Toronto Stock Exchange S&P/TSX composite index finished up 20.10 points at 7,251.44.

Gold stocks, which rose 2.09%, helped to keep the TSX benchmark in the black..

Among gold issues, Agnico-Eagle rose 79¢, to $17.15, while Glamis Gold climbed 90¢, to $17.90.

The information technology sector gained 0.44%, tech bellwethers Nortel Networks and JDS Uniphase reported quarterly results after markets closed.

Nortel reported a small second-quarter loss and lower sales while JDS said it had a smaller loss in its fourth quarter.

Nortel had closed up 10¢ at $4.24, while JDS shares ended down 8¢ at $4.47.

Celestica fell 45¢ to $20.85 after the contract electronics manufacturer posted a bigger-than-expected second-quarter loss.

Manulife Financial reported a 12.5 per rise in second-quarter earnings and raised its dividend. Its stock gained 30¢ to $40.70.

The junior S&P/TSX Venture composite index climbed 17.60 points to 1,151.76.

In New York, stocks ended lower despite a surprising drop in weekly jobless claims. The market lost altitude quickly in mid-afternoon as investors locked in profits on earlier gains.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 81.73 points to 9,112.51, while the broader S&P 500 shed 7.01 points to 981.60. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index slipped 17.73 points to 1,701.45.

The market got an early boost on news that new claims for unemployment insurance fell to their lowest level since February and dropped far below economists’ forecasts.

The Canadian dollar finished slightly higher against the U.S. dollar. The loonie rose to US71.64¢, up slightly from US71.54¢, at Wednesday’s close.