Mixed close on Wall Street as markets eye jobs report

NEW YORK (AA) – Wall Street closed mixed Thursday after being pulled in different directions by varying data on the first trading day of the month.

The Dow Jones fell 18 points to end the day at 18,419. The S&P 500 closed flat -- falling less than 0.1 points to close at 2,170. The Nasdaq lost 14 points to finish the day at 5,227.

Initial jobless claims last week rose by 263,000, according to the Labor Department, as analysts expected an increase of 265,000. And manufacturing contracted for the first time in six months.

The markets are now focused on the all-important jobs data for August that will be released Friday just before the opening bell on Wall Street.

A positive report could trigger gains on Wall Street and increase the likelihood the Federal Reserve will raise its benchmark interest rate later this month.

Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester said Thursday that "the current very low level of interest rates is an effective solution to these longer-run issues," referring to the problems in the U.S. labor market.

Mester, who has a voting right in the Federal Open Market Committee this year, has now joined Fed chief Janet Yellen, Vice President Stanley Fischer and Boston Fed head Eric Rosengren in hinting the central bank could raise rates this year.