1st LD Writethru: U.S. stocks end mixed amid surging dollar

U.S. stocks closed mixed Thursday amid a strong rebound in the U.S. dollar, as investors were still digesting Wednesday's statement from the Federal Reserve.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 117.16 points, or 0.65 percent, to 17,959.03. The S&P 500 lost 10.23 points, or 0.49 percent, to 2,089.27. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 9.55 points, or 0.19 percent, to 4,992.38.

U.S. stocks swung sharply to gains Wednesday following the statement, as investors were relieved by Fed Chair Janet Yellen's dovish outlook.

In its statement on monetary policy Wednesday, the Fed dropped its promise to remain "patient" before raising interest rates. However, "Just because we're not using the word 'patient' doesn't mean we're going to be impatient," said Yellen at a press conference following the statement's release.

Moreover, the Fed said it will "be appropriate" to raise interest rates when it has seen further improvement in the labor market and is "reasonably confident" that inflation will move back to its target of 2 percent in the medium term.

Analysts said the Fed could afford to be patient in deciding when to raise interest rates as labor force participation rate was lower than expected and wage growth remained sluggish, although the unemployment rate had fallen to an almost seven-year low of 5. 5 percent in February.

The U.S. dollar bounced back sharply on Thursday after its biggest slide since 2009 following the Fed statement on Wednesday.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, was down 1.55 percent during the prior session. The greenback pared most of its losses on Thursday with the dollar index up 0.88 percent at 99.415 in late trading.

On the economic front, in the week ending March 14, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial jobless claims was 291,000, an increase of 1,000 from the previous week's revised level, the U. S. Labor Department reported Thursday.

Apple officially began trading as a member of the Dow Thursday, replacing AT&T in the index. Its shares fell 0.76 percent to 127. 50 dollars apiece. Endite