US Stock Market: DJIA, S&P500, Nasdaq, Russell ended mixed on Thursday

The stock market suffered significant losses on Thursday, but a late buying flurry reversed some of those losses, leaving Wall Street indices divided but still headed for a weekend down.

The S&P 500 climbed 0.3% after falling 1.3% earlier in the day. The upward swing in the benchmark index in the final 10 minutes of trade halted a four-day losing run.

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The Dow Jones Industrial Average recovered from an early decline to end 0.5% higher, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite dipped 0.3%. Several indexes of small and mid-sized businesses fell as well, including the Russell 2000, which finished 1.2% lower.

Stocks finished mixed as traders await the Labor Department’s latest monthly job market snapshot on Friday. The Federal Reserve will consider the August update on job and wage growth as it determines further interest rate hikes in its bid to slow the economy enough to bring down inflation.

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The S&P 500 rose 11.85 points to 3,966.85, while the Dow added 145.99 points to 31,656.42. The Nasdaq slid 31.08 points to 11,785.13, its fifth straight drop. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 21.30 points to 1,822.82.

Gains in health care stocks, companies that rely on direct consumer spending and communications services providers helped lift the market. Johnson & Johnson rose 2.5%, Target gained 2.8% and Netflix added 2.9%.

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Technology stocks were once again one of the heaviest weights on the market. Nvidia dropped 7.7% after the chipmaker said the U.S. government imposed new licensing requirements on its sales to China.

Energy stocks fell as the price of U.S. crude oil, which is coming off its third month of declines, dropped 3.3% to $86.61 a barrel. Chevron slid 1.6%. Major indexes in Europe and Asia closed lower.

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Treasury yields rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury, which influences interest rates on mortgages and other consumer loans, rose to 3.26% from 3.20% late Wednesday. The two-year Treasury yield, which tends to track expectations for Fed action, rose to 3.52% from 3.50% and is now at the highest level since 2007.

Bond yields have been rising along with expectations for higher interest rates, which the Federal Reserve has been increasing in a bid to squash the highest inflation in decades.

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The S&P 500 ended August with a 4.2% loss after surging 9.1% in July on optimism that the Fed might be able to ease back on raising rates following signs that inflation, while still high, was levelling off.

The July and early August market rally marked a brief positive turn for Wall Street after a weak first half of the year where the S&P 500 dropped 20% from its most recent high and entered a bear market. September may not offer much of a respite for investors, as historically it tends to be the worst month for stocks.