• The Dow and the S&P 500 fell while the Nasdaq rose Thursday as investors braced for Friday's jobs report.
  • Last week's jobless claims fell slightly, while private payrolls rose less than expected in August.
  • The August nonfarm payroll report will be an important input for the Fed ahead of its next policy meeting.

US stocks ended mixed Thursday as investors digested new labor market data ahead of the August jobs report.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell over 250 points and the S&P 500 slipped less than 0.5%. The Nasdaq Composite inched higher in the session.

Bond yields continued to tumble, adding to declines from earlier in the week. The 10-year Treasury yield dipped three basis points to 3.731%.

Investors are eagerly anticipating the August nonfarm payroll report, with markets on edge after new data points this week showed the job market and the economy may be slowing.

Private payrolls rose less than expected in August, with 99,000 workers added compared to estimates of 140,000. The number was also below July's data, which showed 111,000 new hires, according to ADP.

"While the actual print has little to no signaling power for the BLS payrolls figures, the fact that ADP private payrolls have been softening for 5 consecutive months is noteworthy," Gregory Daco, chief economist at EY, said in a Thursday note.

July job openings also pointed to labor market softening, sinking to their lowest in over three years at 7.67 million, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Last week's jobless claims, meanwhile, fell slightly for the second straight week. Unemployment claims fell to 227,000 from 231,000 from the week before, according to Labor Department data.

Analysts expect the August nonfarm payroll report to show the unemployment rate to fall slightly to 4.2% with an additional 162,000 jobs added in the month.

The data will follow a critical report from July, which showed that unemployment increased to 4.3% in a surprise jump, up from 4.1% in June. The reading helped spark a steep market sell-off in early August.

Here's where US indexes stood at the 4 p.m. closing bell on Thursday:

Here's what else happened today:

In commodities, bonds, and crypto:

  • Oil futures were lower. WTI crude increased inched down to $69.15 a barrel. Brent crude, the international benchmark, dipped to $72.66 a barrel.
  • Gold was up 0.75% to $2,544.90 per ounce.
  • The 10-year Treasury yield dipped three basis points to 3.731%.
  • Bitcoin dropped 3.6% to $56,024.
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