Brendan McDermid/Reuters
- US stocks ended the day lower as investors looked ahead to the September jobs report.
- Wall Street expects a 170,000 increase in payrolls last month, down from 187,000 in August.
- Investors are hoping to see a softer employment picture, which could influence the Fed to dial back rates.
US stocks moved slightly lower on Thursday as investors looked ahead to the September jobs report on Friday.
Wall Street hopes to see a softer picture of the labor market, which could influence the Fed to dial back interest rates.
Friday's jobs report is expected to show a 170,000 increase in payrolls, according to economists polled by Dow Jones, slightly lower than the 187,000 payrolls reported in August.
Weekly jobless data on Thursday came in slightly stronger than expected at 207,000, below the anticipated 210,000.