The market struggled to find direction amid expectations for QE2 and discouraging employment data from the private sector in September. Stocks ended Wednesday mixed on relatively low volume, as investors digested the data and took a step back prior to same-store sales tomorrow and the all-important September jobs report on Friday.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended up 22.93 points, or 0.21%, to close at 10,967. The S&P 500 fell 0.80 points, or 0.07%, to close at 1159, and the Nasdaq was down 19.17 points, or 0.80%, to finish at 2380.

Gold continued its stellar run, rising as high as nearly $1,350 an ounce, before slipping back slightly, while copper prices hit a two-year high, boosted in part by a weaker U.S. dollar. Benchmark crude added $0.41, to settle at $83.23 a barrel, on the New York Mercantile Exchange.