U.S. stocks trade mixed after Chrysler files for bankruptcy

Special Report:Global Financial Crisis

NEW YORK, April 30 (Xinhua) -- Wall Street ended
mixed Thursday after the third largest U.S. automaker Chrysler announced it will
file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

Wall Street opened higher in the morning as investors
welcomed a surprise decline in new jobless claims and earnings beating
estimates.

The U.S. Labor Department said initial claims fell
14,000 to 631,000 last week. Economists had predicted a rise. But continuing
claims jumped to a new record.

However, the U.S. Commerce Department reported
Thursday that consumer spending dropped by 0.2 percent in March, worse than the
0.1 percent decline that economists had expected.

In a midday speech, U.S. President Barack Obama
indicated that Chrysler will form an alliance with the Italian carmaker Fiat
Group SpA.

Under the direction of the U.S. Treasury, the
troubled automaker and 24 of its wholly owned U.S. subsidiaries filed voluntary
petitions under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code in U.S. Bankruptcy Court.

In corporate news, many companies including Dow
Chemical, PG, Exxon Mobil and Newmont Mining reported results topped
analysts' expectations. And Motorola Inc. posted a loss during the first
quarter, but smaller than analysts had predicted.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 17.61 points, or 0.22 percent, to 8,168.12. The Standard Poor's 500 index dipped 0.83 of a point, or 0.09 percent, to 872.81. The Nasdaq Composite index was up 5.36 points, or 0.31 percent, to 1,717.30.