US stock indexes declined during Thursdays trading, with the SP 500 posting its fifth consecutive drop, as investors awaited Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powells speech at the Jackson Hole Symposium.

Markets are closely watching Powells remarks on Friday, with expectations pointing to a 25-basis-point rate cut at the Feds September meeting.

Meanwhile, government data released today showed initial jobless claims in the US rising by 11,000 to 235,000 in the week ending August 16, the highest level in two months. Analysts had expected claims to increase to 226,000, compared with the unrevised prior weeks figure of 224,000.

As for trading performance, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.2% (95 points) to 44,844 points as of 15:27 GMT. The broader SP 500 slipped 0.1% (5 points) to 6,391 points, while the Nasdaq Composite edged up 0.1% (10 points) to 21,183 points.