The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 48.20 points, or 0.14 percent, to 35,312.53. The S&P 500 rose 1.41 points, or 0.03 percent, to 4,524.09. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 50.15 points, or 0.33 percent, to 15,309.38.
Six of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in green, with real estate up 1.69 percent, leading the gainers. Energy slipped 1.51 percent, the worst-performing group.
U.S.-listed Chinese companies traded mostly higher with eight of the top 10 stocks by weight in the S&P U.S. Listed China 50 index ending the day on an upbeat note.
The above market reactions came as investors digested a disappointing jobs report.
Private companies in the United States added 374,000 jobs in August, payroll data company Automatic Data Processing (ADP) reported Wednesday, suggesting the Delta variant of COVID-19 have depressed hiring. Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal had forecast a 600,000 gain.
The ADP report came two days before the crucial monthly employment report released by the Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics, which will include employment data from both the private sector and the government.
Elsewhere, a report by the Institute for Supply Management showed that the August U.S. manufacturing PMI (Purchasing Managers' Index) registered 59.9 percent, up from the July reading of 59.5 percent. Economists polled by MarketWatch had forecast a reading of 58.6 percent. Any number above 50 percent indicates expansion in the sector.
U.S. equities closed out August with gains. For the month, the Dow added 1.2 percent, while the S&P 500 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq advanced 2.9 percent and 4 percent, respectively.
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