U.S. stocks closed mixed after wavering in a tight range on Monday, as a weak nonfarm payroll report caused investors to revise down the likelihood of the U.S. Federal Reserve hiking rates in June.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 34.72 points, or 0.20 percent, to 17,705.91. The S&P 500 inched down 1.55 points, or 0. 08 percent, to 2,058.69. The Nasdaq Composite Index gained 14.05 points, or 0.30 percent, to 4,750.21.
With no major economic report due out Monday, Wall Street was still sifting through Friday's highly-watched jobs report. U.S. total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 160,000 in April, well below the market consensus of 200,000, the Labor Department reported Friday.
The unemployment rate was unchanged at 5.0 percent in April, also missing the market estimate of 4.9 percent. In April, average hourly earnings for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls increased by 8 cents to 25.53 U.S. dollars, following an increase of 6 cents in March. Over the year, average hourly earnings have risen by 2.5 percent.
Chicago Fed President Charles Evans said Monday that he expected to see a 2.5 percent growth rate of U.S. economy for the full year 2016, but the Fed's "wait and see" approach on interest rates at this time is appropriate.
Oil prices tumbled Monday amid reduced concerns about the massive wildfires disrupting Canada oil production, with Brent crude falling about 4 percent.
Overseas, European equities also finished mixed Monday amid falling oil prices. German benchmark DAX index at Frankfurt Stock Exchange added 1.12 percent, while British benchmark FTSE 100 Index decreased 0.18 percent. In Asia, Chinese stocks plunged on Monday, reaching eight-month lows, as investors saw hopes for a strong economic recovery fade and worried about fresh regulatory curbs on speculation. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index dropped 2.79 percent to 2,832. 11 points.
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