Weighing Positive Data, Markets Close Lower Stocks on Wall Street closed lower on Thursday as a round of mixed economic data left investors unsure over how soon the Federal Reserve was prepared to begin winding down its monetary stimulus. By the end of trading, both the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index and the Dow Jones industrial average were down 0.4 percent. The Nasdaq composite was 0.1 percent lower. The United States economy grew at an annualized rate of 3.6 percent in the third quarter, the fastest pace since the first quarter of 2012, instead of the 2.8 percent pace reported earlier. Economists polled by Reuters had expected growth would be revised up to 3.0 percent. But the strong inventory accumulation in the face of a slowdown in domestic demand means businesses will need to draw down on stocks, which will weigh on growth in gross domestic product this quarter. "The big top line number probably will be looked at very carefully and probably not create as big a market reaction as one would expect from the size of the adjustment," said Fred Dickson, chief market strategist at D.A. Davidson & Company, Lake Oswego, Ore. On the surface it looks good, underneath, not quite so good. Dennis P. Lockhart, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, addressing an audience of bankers and business people, downplayed the G.D.P. number on Thursday. "The strong third quarter doesn't make a trend and ... doesn't drive me to the conclusion that we've had a breakout in terms of growth," he said, citing "pretty low" ongoing estimates for fourth-quarter growth. In Europe, Britain's chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne, provided an annual update on economic strategy that was the most upbeat in years, with growth forecasts for 2013 revised upward to a 1.4 percent annual rate from 0.6 percent, and to 2.4 percent from 1.8 percent for next year. Still, London's FTSE 100 closed 0.2 percent lower for the day. Elsewhere, the DAX in Frankfurt ended the session off 0.6 percent, and the CAC 40 in Paris was 1.2 percent lower. Both the Bank of England and the European Central Bank announced they would keep rates at record lows, decisions that had been expected. In Asia, markets closed mainly lower, with the Nikkei in Japan down 1.5 percent and China's Shanghai composite 0.2 percent lower. In a positive sign for the labor market ahead of Friday's payrolls report, data showed initial claims for state unemployment benefits dropped 23,000 to a seasonally adjusted 298,000, declining for a third straight week, and below expectations of a rise to 325,000. But in contrast to the earlier data suggesting an improvement in the economy, new orders for factory goods fell 0.9 percent in October after a 1.8 percent rise in the prior month as demand for aircraft and capital goods weakened, suggesting some cooling in manufacturing. Shares of Apple gained 1 percent after China Mobile Ltd., the country's largest mobile operator, said it was still negotiating to offer iPhones on its network. A media report had earlier said the long-awaited agreement had been reached. Several major retailers posted disappointing sales for November after cautious shoppers pinched their pennies at the start of a shorter holiday season. Aéropostale slumped 2.9 percent after the apparel retailer forecast a much bigger-than-expected loss for the holiday shopping quarter. Dollar General gained 6.1 percent after posting third-quarter earnings. General Growth Properties advanced 2.7 percent. Standard & Poor's said the company would replace Molex in the S.&P. 500 after the close of trading on Dec. 9. On Wall Street, the S.&P. 500 has fallen for five straight sessions, its longest losing streak since late September as recent economic data has cast some uncertainty over when the Federal Reserve will begin to trim its stimulus of $85 billion in monthly bond purchases. Many market participants expect the Fed to announce a cut in March. The Fed has said it would slow its stimulus program when certain economic measures meet its targets, including a decline in the unemployment rate.