Mortgage rates inched higher Thursday following the release of stronger than expected economic data and ahead of tomorrow’s key Employment Report. In economic news, weekly Jobless Claims fell to 323,000, beating forecast. Second quarter Productivity was revised higher to 2.3%. Payroll firm ADP estimated private sector job growth of 176,000 last month, in line with expectations. The Institute for Supply Management services index jumped to 58.6, well above the consensus forecast of 55.0. Factory Orders fell by 2.4%, which was better than expected. Stocks moved higher. No other key data will be released today. The closely-watched Non-farm Payrolls Report for August will come out at 8:30 AM on Friday.