The S&P 500 and Dow industrial stock index futures extended gains on Thursday as a government report showed the number of U.S. workers filing new claims for jobless benefits fell sharply last week to the lowest level since January.

S&P 500 futures were 2.60 points higher and were slightly above fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures rose 49 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures shed 1.50 points.

(Reporting by Ellis Mnyandu; Editing by Padraic Cassidy)

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