(For a Reuters live blog on U.S., UK and European stock

markets, click or type LIVE/ in a news window.)

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Indexes: Dow down 0.11%, S&P 500 up 0.04%, Nasdaq down

0.01%

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Salesforce ( CRM ) drops after downbeat revenue forecast

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American Eagle Outfitters ( AEO ) surges on strong sales forecast

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Private payrolls increase less than expected in August

(Updates after markets open)

By Purvi Agarwal and Ragini Mathur

Sept 4 (Reuters) - Wall Street's main indexes were

little changed on Thursday after a softer-than-expected private

payrolls report, while Salesforce ( CRM ) shares dropped as the cloud

company gave a downbeat revenue forecast.

U.S. private payrolls

increased

less than anticipated in August, while weekly jobless

claims came

in higher than expected

, in the latest data pointing to easing labor market

conditions.

Trader bets on a September interest rate cut stood intact at

over 97%, according to CME's FedWatch Tool. A 25 basis point cut

was largely priced in after July's bleak payrolls figures,

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's dovish comments and a weak

job openings report for July.

The focus now shifts to Friday's highly anticipated

nonfarm payrolls data.

"We got a softer ADP (reading) but not enough to

indicate a material slowdown or any change in the easing bias of

the Fed," said Eric Teal, chief investment officer at Comerica

Wealth Management.

"The market is expecting to see some weakening that will

make a stronger case for monetary easing."

Separately, the Institute for Supply Management's index

showed U.S. services sector activity

picked up

in August.

Meanwhile, Salesforce ( CRM ) fell 8% after it forecast

third-quarter revenue below Wall Street estimates on Wednesday,

signaling lagging monetization for its AI agent platform. The

stock bogged down the blue-chip Dow.

While AI-linked companies have driven U.S. stock indexes

to record highs this year, their momentum slowed last month on

concerns over valuations and results from bellwether Nvidia ( NVDA )

which fell short of heightened expectations.

On Thursday, Amazon.com ( AMZN ) gained 3.2%, while Meta

Platforms ( META ) jumped 1.8%, boosting the consumer

discretionary and communication services sectors

.

At 10:11 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average

fell 48.34 points, or 0.11%, to 45,225.17, the S&P 500

gained 2.48 points, or 0.04%, to 6,450.97 and the Nasdaq

Composite lost 0.92 points, or 0.01%, to 21,499.30.

Investors will also watch U.S. President Donald Trump's

nominee, economic adviser Stephen Miran, testify in a Senate

confirmation hearing on Thursday to fill an open seat on the Fed

board.

Wall Street had a dour start to September, pressured by

rising Treasury yields. The month has been historically bad,

with the S&P 500 losing 1.5% on average since 2000, according to

LSEG data.

The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq closed higher on Wednesday,

boosted by Google-parent Alphabet hitting a record

high after a Washington judge ruled the company would not have

to sell its Chrome browser. The stock fell 1.6%.

Market participants will also parse speeches from Fed

officials John Williams and Austan Goolsbee later in the day.

Central bank officials had said on Wednesday that labor market

worries continued to animate their belief that rate cuts still

lay ahead.

American Eagle Outfitters ( AEO ) soared about 30% and was

set for its biggest one-day gain after the apparel company

forecast third-quarter comparable sales above estimates on

Wednesday.

Figma ( FIG ) fell 18% after the design software firm's

first quarterly results as a public company failed to impress

investors.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.49-to-1 ratio

on the NYSE and by a 1.23-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P 500 posted seven new 52-week highs and six new

lows, while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 42 new highs and 85

new lows.