Wall Street Closes Mixed Ahead of Non-Farm Payroll Report

Markets Turn Nervous Ahead of Non-Farm Payrolls Report, Likely Paving the Way for Fed Rate Cuts.

The S&P 500 and Dow Jones both ended lower on Thursday after a volatile session, as the momentum from a series of economic reports faded and investors remained focused on Friday’s upcoming employment data. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq posted a slight gain.

Markets grew jittery ahead of the release of non-farm payroll data, which is expected to set the stage for the Federal Reserve (Fed) to begin cutting interest rates later this month.

In the early hours of the session, Wall Street’s major indexes rallied following data that helped ease concerns over a weakening labor market.

The S&P 500 dropped 16.66 points, or 0.30%, to close at 5,503.41, while the Nasdaq added 43.36 points, or 0.25%, to end at 17,126.66. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 219.22 points, or 0.54%, closing at 40,755.75.

A survey from the Institute for Supply Management showed that the services sector expanded in August, while initial jobless claims fell last week, according to data from the U.S. Department of Labor.

Markets have been riding a rollercoaster of risk as they closely watch the data, following the Fed’s commitment to a data-driven approach. Investors are scrutinizing the numbers to gauge the economy’s performance in relation to a “soft landing” scenario and its implications for the Fed’s interest rate policy.

September has historically been a weak month for U.S. equities, with the S&P 500 averaging a monthly drop of about 1.2% since 1928. The index is already down more than 2% this week, and tech stocks have lost over 4%.