Indexes slip as jobless claims rise ahead of much-anticipated jobs report

• Indexes fell on Thursday as investors weighed jobless claims and geopolitical tensions.

• Jobless claims rose to 225,000, beating forecasts of about 221,000.

• On Friday, investors will get another labor market update from September’s nonfarm payrolls report.

US stocks fell on Thursday, fueled by a rise in jobless claims ahead of a key jobs report and continued tensions in the Middle East.

Weekly jobless claims rose 6,000 to 225,000, according to Labor Department data released Thursday.

That beat forecasts of about 221,000, but weekly claims remained subdued, with the four-week moving average falling to its lowest point since June.

Investors are also focused on the simmering geopolitical conflict in the Middle East, which triggered a sell-off on Tuesday and Wednesday morning following an Iranian missile attack on Israel.

Oil prices rose this week as investors fear a supply disruption if Israel retaliates by striking Iran’s oil facilities.

On Friday, investors will closely watch the September jobs report, which is expected to show the unemployment rate holding steady at 4.2 percent. Forecasters see an increase of 150,000 jobs in September, ahead of August’s figure of 142,000.

The data will be a key indicator of the Federal Reserve’s next rate cut decision after cutting rates by 50 basis points last month. Markets are pricing in a 65 percent chance of a cut of less than 25 basis points in November, according to the CME FedWatch tool.

Analysts say the report is likely to have a big influence on both markets and the Fed in the coming weeks.

“We believe a weak employment report is likely to generate a greater market response than a strong employment report,” Bank of America analysts said in a report on Wednesday.

“We think the market will be most focused on the labor force data in the coming weeks, but we have to recognize that the inflation data could also support another 50bp cut in November,” they added.

Here’s where U.S. indexes stood shortly after the opening bell at 9:30 a.m. Thursday:

Here’s what else happened on Thursday:

In commodities, bonds and crypto:

• Oil futures rose. West Texas Intermediate crude rose 2.5% to $71.88 a barrel. Brent crude, the international benchmark, rose 2.3% to $75.62 a barrel.

• Gold remained almost flat at $2,668 an ounce.

• The 10-year Treasury yield rose 2 basis points to 3.813%.

• Bitcoin fell to $60,438.

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