(CNBC) — U.S. stocks closed lower Tuesday, with utilities falling 1 percent, as investors analyzed strong consumer data while keeping an eye on Federal Reserve ahead of Friday’s jobs report.
“After coming off of Jackson Hole, …all the attention is now to the jobs report,” said Bob Phillips, managing principal at Spectrum Management Group. “If it comes out to be a decent number, I think the market will sell off.”
Economists polled by Reuters expect the U.S. economy to have added 180,000 jobs in August.
Investors continued searching for clues regarding the Fed’s next move Tuesday, after Fed Vice Chairman Stanley Fischer said the U.S. job market is almost at full strength. Fischer made his remarks less than a week after telling CNBC that the August jobs report will weigh on the central bank’s decision on whether to raise interest rates.
