Wall Street stocks edge higher

Stocks edged higher in midday trading on Wall Street Wednesday as investors continue monitoring the latest economic data for a better sense of the economic recovery's path forward.

The S&P 500 index rose 0.2% as of 11:53 a.m. Eastern. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 23 points, or 0.1%, to 35,337 and the Nasdaq rose 0.7%.

Technology and communications stocks made solid gains that helped lift an otherwise choppy market. Apple rose 1.9%. More stocks were falling than rising in the benchmark S&P 500.

Investors were weighing a weak survey from payroll processor ADP that showed U.S. companies added jobs at a much slower pace than economists had anticipated. The weak report follows a disappointing consumer confidence survey on Tuesday and comes ahead of the Labor Department's release of its August jobs report on Friday.

"Friday's (jobs) numbers are going to be very carefully looked at on all levels," said Tom Martin, senior portfolio manager with Globalt Investments.

The report should provide more clues about the strength of the job market and might give investors a clearer sense of whether the Federal Reserve will decide at its upcoming September meeting on a timeline for paring back the $120 billion in bond purchases it's making each month. Fed Chair Jerome Powell has signaled that the central bank will continue to keep interest rates low for the foreseeable future, even when it tapers the bond buying.

Meanwhile, The Institute for Supply Management, a trade group of purchasing managers, reported that growth in U.S. manufacturing accelerated in August despite the fact that companies were still struggling with supply chain problems. The supply chain issues, along with improvements in employment, are key factors in how investors are gauging the direction and potential impact of inflation, Martin said.