NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) - Bonds prices held steady Thursday following a mixed round of economic reports on productivity and employment data.

The dollar gained against both the euro and the yen.

The 10-year note was relatively unchanged at 99-16/32 to yield 4.56 percent. The 30-year bond edged one tick lower to 109-22/32, yielding 4.71 percent, practically unchanged from the previous session. Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions.

The two-year note was flat, yielding 4.57 percent. The five-year note was also unchanged, yielding 4.50 percent.

Nonfarm business productivity in the fourth quarter fell by a surprising 0.6 percent annual rate, posting its first decline since the first quarter of 2001. While economists had predicted a 1.6 percent growth rate, the government report also showed a sharp increase in labor costs, which could spark inflation fears.

Bond traders fear inflation since it erodes the value of the fixed-income investment.

Weekly jobless claims posted an unexpected drop to 273,000 bringing the four-week average to its lowest level since June 2006, the Labor Department reported Thursday.

But the big economic data of the week for bond traders will be Friday's nonfarm payroll numbers. Investors will be closely watching for data that may guide new Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke when he oversees his first Fed meeting in March.

In currency trading, the euro bought $1.2055, down from $1.2153 late Tuesday. The dollar bought ¥118.55, up from ¥117.21 in the previous session.

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