US stocks closed near unchanged on Thursday, as investors weighed a report on the labour market and other economic data as equities drew support from elevated hopes for a Federal Reserve interest-rate cut next week.
A 1.4 per cent drop in Amazon.com shares weighed on the S&P 500, limiting its advance.
With the November payrolls report scheduled for after the Fed's December meeting due to the extended government shutdown, traders have looked to secondary indicators that have given a mixed view of the labour market as the backlog of government data slowly gets unwound.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 31.96 points, or 0.07 per cent, to 47,850.94, the S&P 500 gained 7.40 points, or 0.11 per cent, to 6,857.12 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 51.04 points, or 0.22 per cent, to 23,505.14.
US jobless rate drops
A US Labor Department report showed initial jobless claims dropped to their lowest level in more than three years, although analysts suggested the drop could have been in part due to the Thanksgiving holiday.
A separate report from the Chicago Fed estimated the unemployment rate held near 4.4 per cent in November.
Markets are pricing in an 87 per cent chance the central bank will cut rates by 25 basis points this month, up from a 68.6 per cent chance priced in a month ago, according to CME's FedWatch Tool.
A delayed report from the Commerce Department showed factory orders rose 0.2 per cent, short of the 0.5 per cent estimate, after a downwardly revised 1.3 per cent increase in August as tariffs hemmed in manufacturers.
