US close: Markets flat ahead of non-farm payrolls
US stocks finished relatively flat on Thursday after the Bank of England cut interest rates and data showed weekly jobless claims rose more than expected.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was last down 0.02% at 18,352.05, the S&P 500 added 0.02% to 2,164.25 and the Nasdaq 100 was up 0.2% at 4,743.81.
Initial jobless claims rose 3,000 to 269,000 in the week to 30 July, according to the Labor Department.
Economists had been expecting a reading of 265,000.
The data comes ahead of the all-important non-farm payrolls report which is expected to show employers added 175,000 jobs in July, compared to 287,000 in June.
Another report from the Commerce Department showed factory orders dropped 1.5% in June from a year ago, better than the 1.9% fall expected.
Earlier in London, the BoE's Monetary Policy Committee voted unanimously to lower interest rates by 25 basis points to 0.25%, as expected by economists. The Bank voted 6-3 to boost the size of the asset purchase programme by £60bn.
“Today’s historic decision to cut interest rates for the first time in more than seven years is no major shock, but it does indicate growing concern over the state of Britain’s post-Brexit economy,” said Dennis de Jong, managing director at UFX.com.
“Last month Mark Carney’s rate-setters surprised many by holding their nerve when voting against a reduction, but a raft of underwhelming economic data has finally forced their hand.”
In corporate news, Kellogg shares gained 1.65% after the Corn Flakes maker raised its adjusted profit forecasts for 2016.
Viacom reversed earlier losses and finished down 0.98% as it reported quarterly earnings and revenue that beat analysts' expectations.
Square Inc surged 8.43% after its second-quarter revenue beat estimates and the company lifted its revenue guidance for the year.
TripAdvisor sank 8.49% after missing second quarter targets as its revenue declined.
Dow Jones - Risers
Visa Inc. (V) $79.48 0.98%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $34.58 0.96%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $57.39 0.74%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $118.30 0.66%
International Business Machines Corp. (IBM) $161.55 0.55%
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) $73.30 0.49%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $57.84 0.33%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $30.80 0.26%
American Express Co. (AXP) $63.94 0.17%
General Electric Co. (GE) $31.16 0.13%
Dow Jones - Fallers
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $95.16 -0.97%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $136.07 -0.74%
Boeing Co. (BA) $131.21 -0.50%
Pfizer Inc. (PFE) $35.15 -0.40%
3M Co. (MMM) $177.81 -0.32%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $81.77 -0.32%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $43.49 -0.30%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $100.42 -0.22%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $158.05 -0.18%
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $64.56 -0.15%
S&P 500 - Risers
Ball Corp (BLL) $78.51 12.00%
Harman International Industries Inc. (HAR) $87.53 7.03%
Royal Caribbean Cr (RCL) $73.28 6.59%
Parker-Hannifin Corp. (PH) $118.94 4.55%
Westrock Company (WRK) $43.73 4.22%
Western Union Co. (WU) $20.69 3.87%
Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $14.03 3.85%
Church Dwight Co Inc. (CHD) $101.18 3.65%
Transocean Ltd. (RIG) $10.83 3.64%
Leucadia National Corp. (LUK) $18.66 3.61%
S&P 500 - Fallers
CF Industries Holdings Inc. (CF) $21.43 -12.60%
First Solar Inc. (FSLR) $43.72 -11.21%
MetLife Inc. (MET) $39.54 -9.52%
Henry Schein Inc. (HSIC) $163.53 -8.99%
TripAdvisor Inc. (TRIP) $63.59 -8.49%
Quanta Services Inc. (PWR) $23.45 -7.75%
Iron Mountain Inc (New) (IRM) $37.96 -5.69%
Twenty-First Century Fox Inc Class A (FOXA) $25.59 -5.36%
Tractor Supply Company (TSCO) $86.35 -5.02%
Twenty-First Century Fox Inc Class B (FOX) $26.21 -4.41%
Nasdaq 100 - Risers
Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $14.03 3.85%
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. - Ordinary Shares (NCLH) $41.66 2.99%
Verisk Analytics Inc. (VRSK) $81.13 2.14%
Tesla Motors Inc (TSLA) $230.61 2.13%
Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $57.23 1.85%
Broadcom Limited (AVGO) $166.99 1.75%
Seagate Technology Plc (STX) $31.26 1.72%
Facebook Inc. (FB) $124.36 1.51%
Yahoo! Inc. (YHOO) $38.92 1.38%
Nxp Semiconductors Nv (NXPI) $84.25 1.32%
Nasdaq 100 - Fallers
Henry Schein Inc. (HSIC) $163.53 -8.99%
TripAdvisor Inc. (TRIP) $63.59 -8.49%
Twenty-First Century Fox Inc Class A (FOXA) $25.59 -5.36%
Tractor Supply Company (TSCO) $86.35 -5.02%
Twenty-First Century Fox Inc Class B (FOX) $26.21 -4.41%
Biogen Inc (BIIB) $314.56 -2.11%
Biomarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (BMRN) $99.62 -1.81%
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. (REGN) $433.40 -1.81%
Discovery Communications Inc. Class C (DISCK) $25.45 -1.78%
JD.com, Inc. (JD) $21.37 -1.66%