Stocks’ jitters easing

NEW YORK – The anxiety that rattled markets earlier this week dissipated Thursday as China’s central bank calmed concerns that the country’s currency would continue its slide. Major markets in Europe and Asia made gains, while the U.S. stock market finished with a slight loss.

Officials from China’s central bank defended recent moves to loosen the government’s grip on its currency, saying that the yuan will eventually rebound from its recent fall. There is “no basis for persistent and substantial devaluation,” said a deputy central bank governor, Zhang Xiaohui. The yuan is close to “market levels” after two days of sharp drops, Zhang said.

Beijing’s surprise devaluation of its currency shook markets around the world this week, upending stocks, commodities and currencies.

“I think the central bankers have given people a reason to believe they’re not that worried,” said Jason Pride, director of investment strategy at Glenmede, a money management firm. “That’s why we’re seeing some recovery today.”

The major U.S. stock indexes spent much of Thursday changing course. They fell in the morning, climbed higher in the afternoon then drifted lower in the final hour of trading.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index lost 2.66 points, or 0.1 percent, to close at 2,083.39.

The Dow Jones industrial gained 5.74 points, less than 0.1 percent, to 17,408.25 and the Nasdaq composite lost 10.83 points, or 0.2 percent, to 5,033.56.

“This week it has really been all about China’s move and trying to interpret what its broader impact might be,” said Stephen Freedman, senior investment strategist at UBS Wealth Management. “Now it seems cooler heads are prevailing. People are saying, ‘Maybe this might not be as big of a deal as feared.’ ”