Stocks were little changed on Thursday as investors digested a fresh batch of data that could provide clues on how big of an interest rate cut the Federal Reserve will decide to implement at its policy meeting this month.
The S&P 500 (^GSPC) and the Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) were flat, coming off sharp closing gains fueled by a tech rally. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) was little changed.
On the inflation data front, the Producer Price Index rose 0.2% in August from the prior month, slightly higher than what economists had been expecting. Meanwhile July's PPI reading was revised to the downside. On a year-over-year basis, wholesale prices rose 1.7%, in line with expectations.
Weekly initial jobless claims rose by 2,000 to 230,000, higher than what economists had been anticipating.
Investors are paying close attention to these data points as the Federal Reserve prepares to meet next week. The markets have been widely anticipating a rate cut. What is unknown is how big that cut will be.