By MarketWatch NEW YORK (MarketWatch) - Treasurys relinquished earlier gains Thursday, taking pressure off yields, after a weekly report showed a steeper slide in jobless claims than economists had expected. The Labor Department estimated jobless claims fell to 473,000 in the latest week, while economists surveyed by MarketWatch had expected initial claims to drop to 490,000. See jobless claims story. The sharper-than-expected drop in claims took a "small toll" on the Treasury market Thursday, said strategists at CRT Capital Group. "There's nothing in the claim report to be particularly encouraging so we don't describe the drop as 'good' economic news," they wrote in a note. "But for now, consistent with chart momentum, the market has some downside to probe." Yields on benchmark 10-year notes (UST10Y 2.54, +0.00, +0.16%) were flat at 2.54%. Prices and yields move in opposite directions. Yields on 30-year bonds (UST30Y 3.57, -.00, -0.06%) were also flat, at 3.57%. Although initial jobless claims were much better than expected "they remain at exceptionally elevated levels in comparison to where we stand in the recovery," said Dan Greenhaus, chief economic strategist at Miller Tabak. "It has been 73 weeks since the peak in jobless claims and claims are just short of 28% off the highs," he said. "While that's better than the prior two recoveries, it significantly trails the 1983 recovery, the last recession comparable in size to the just completed recession."

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