US stocks trod water before the bell on Thursday as Wall Street assessed an unexpected decline in claims, complicating the calculus for interest rate cuts amid uncertainty about Federal Reserve unity on policy. Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (YM=F) dipped about 0.2%, and those tied to the S&P 500 (ES=F) lost 0.4%. Meanwhile, contracts on the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 (NQ=F) declined 0.5%, after the major gauges closed lower for a second day. Markets are putting the brakes on stocks' recent reco ...