Wall Street's main indices closed lower on Thursday as investors looked to higher-than-expected inflation and unemployment claims for indications on the health of the US economy and the path for interest rates.

The closely watched Consumer Price Index rose 0.2 percent on a monthly basis in September and 2.4% on an annual basis, with both figures being slightly higher than estimated by economists.

The core figure, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, rose 3.3 percent year-over-year, versus an estimate of 3.2 percent.

In a separate report released on Thursday, jobless claims also rose to 258,000 for the week ending Oct. 5, versus an estimate of 230,000.

"Investors were torn between a stronger than expected CPI report and a weaker than expected unemployment claims report," said Jack Ablin, chief investment officer at Cresset Capital in Chicago. "One showed inflation running hotter than expected and the other showed the economy looking weaker than expected. It's the worst of both worlds."

After the economic data, traders were pricing in a roughly 80 percent probability that the Federal Reserve will cut rates by 25 basis points at its meeting in November and a roughly 20 percent chance it would leave rates unchanged, according to CME's FedWatch.

Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank President Raphael Bostic on Thursday said he would be "totally comfortable" skipping an interest-rate cut at an upcoming meeting of the US central bank, adding that the "choppiness" in recent data on inflation and employment may warrant leaving rates on hold in November.

Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee said he sees "gradual" rate cuts over the next year-and-a-half, while the New York Fed's John Williams said he still sees rate reductions ahead.

According to preliminary data, the Dow Jones fell 0.13 percent to 42,456, the S&P fell 0.20 percent, closing at 5,780 and the Nasdaq fell 0.05 percent to finish at 18,281.

Both the S&P 500 and the Dow had notched record closing highs in the previous day's session. (Reuters)