US stocks fall ahead of jobs data

Wall Street stocks retreated Thursday ahead of keenly anticipated employment data that will be scrutinized for its implications on US monetary policy.

Investors are looking ahead to Friday's US jobs report, expected to show the world's biggest economy added 250,000 positions in September and that unemployment held steady at 3.7 per cent.

Stocks rallied the first two days of this week due to rising hopes the Fed might moderate its inflation-fighting stance in light of weakening economic data.

But equity market drops the last two days have suggested investors are rethinking, as Fed officials continue to stress the need for more action. A better-than-expected jobs report could send stocks lower due to expectations for more aggressive interest rate hikes.

You'd have to be very courageous to make a big bet today before the jobs data, said Gregori Volokhine of Meeschaert Financial Services. Today people are playing the waiting game.

The Dow Jones industrial Average dropped 1.2 per cent to finish the day at 29,926.94.

The broad-based S&P 500 shed 1.0 per cent to 3,744.52, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index lost 0.7 per cent to close at 11,073.31.