US STOCKS-Wall Street ekes out gains as tech stocks eclipse data gloom

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* Weekly jobless claims back over 1 million
* Nvidia dips as data center business results disappoint
* L Brands rises after posting a surprise profit
* Intel jumps after announcing $10 bln share buyback plan
* Indexes up: Dow 0.07%, S&P 0.08%, Nasdaq 0.56%

(Updates to early afternoon)
By Medha Singh and Nishara Karuvalli Pathikkal
Aug 20 (Reuters) - Wall Street's main indexes edged higher
on Thursday as gains in heavyweight tech stocks overshadowed
gloom over downbeat data that underlined the Federal Reserve's
view of a difficult road to recovery.
Apple Inc AAPL.O - the only publicly listed U.S. company
to cross the $2 trillion market value milestone - Amazon.com Inc
AMZN.O and Microsoft Corp MSFT.O were among the biggest
supports for all three indexes on bets they would ride out the
current economic crisis.
"Investors are now modifying where they would traditionally
invest when they have uncertainty about the future," said Mike
Loewengart, managing director of investment strategy at E*TRADE
Financial Corp in Jersey City.
"They see (tech) stocks continue to perform and they are now
filling up a defensive void that has been left by a lot of
traditional places that defensive investors move to."
The three main indexes had opened lower after data showed
jobless claims rose unexpectedly back above the 1 million mark
last week after slipping below that level for the first time
since the start of the pandemic.
A separate set of data from the Philadelphia Fed showed
business conditions index fell more than expected in August.
"Weekly jobless claims show how uneven the economic recovery
is going to be," said Art Hogan, chief market strategist at
National Securities in New York.
The volatility in jobless claims follows the lapse of an
extra $600 weekly unemployment benefit at the end of July and
comes at a time when Democrats in Congress have failed to reach
an agreement with the White House on extending it.
Despite signs that parts of the economy were still far away
from pre-pandemic levels, the benchmark S&P 500 index completed
its fastest recovery from a bear market this week, joining the
Nasdaq in scaling new peaks.
The two indexes retreated from record levels on Wednesday
after minutes from the Fed's latest policy meeting highlighted
that the labor market's swift rebound in May and June had likely
slowed. At 13:03 p.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI
was up 18.16 points, or 0.07%, at 27,711.04, the S&P 500 .SPX
was up 2.59 points, or 0.08%, at 3,377.44. The Nasdaq Composite
.IXIC was up 62.57 points, or 0.56%, at 11,209.03.
Economically sensitive financial .SPSY and energy .SPNY
sectors were some of the biggest percentage losers among the
major S&P sectors.
Nvidia Corp NVDA.O edged higher after posting better than
expected quarterly sales forecast. Intel Corp INTC.O rose 1.5% after announcing a $10 billion
share buyback plan.
L Brands Inc LB.N rose 5.1% after reporting a surprise
quarterly profit, boosted by strong demand for Bath & Body
Works' products as well as higher online sales of Victoria's
Secret lingerie. Declining issues outnumbered advancers for a 1.67-to-1 ratio
on the NYSE and for a 1.76-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P index recorded 12 new 52-week highs and no new low,
while the Nasdaq recorded 54 new highs and 22 new lows.