NEW YORK, Aug. 30 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks traded mixed on Wednesday as investors were digesting a slew of major economic reports.
At midday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 11.10 points, or 0.05 percent, to 21,854.27. The S&P 500 added 4.32 points, or 0.18 percent, to 2,450.62. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 33.64 points, or 0.53 percent, to 6,335.52.
U.S. private sector employment increased by 237,000 jobs in August, well above the market consensus of 185,000, according to ADP National Employment Report released Wednesday.
The ADP report is often seen as a preview for the closely-watched U.S. nonfarm payrolls data due out on Friday.
U.S. real gross domestic product (GDP) increased at an annual rate of 3 percent in the second quarter of 2017, according to the second estimate released by the Commerce Department on Wednesday.
The market has been closely watching the Federal Reserve's next move.
Expectations for tighter monetary policy in the United States have been dampened recently by soft inflation data. Market expectations for a rate hike in December are just 35.7 percent, according to the CME Group's FedWatch tool.
Meanwhile, investors continue to assess the impact of the missile launch by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).
The DPRK fired a missile early Tuesday and the missile fell into the Pacific Ocean off Hokkaido after passing over the Japanese archipelago, said the Japanese government.
Tensions between the United States and the DPRK had risen earlier this month after Trump said the DPRK would face "fire and fury" if it continued to threaten the United States. Enditem
