Wall Street's three major indexes finished lower on Monday (Tuesday AEST) as investors awaited quarterly results from major retailers for clues about the health of United States consumer spending, while rising oil prices added to market caution amid a lack of progress between the U.S. and Iran towards a deal.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 272.6 points, or 0.5%, to 53,459.8, while the S&P 500 declined 40.7 points, or 0.5%, to 7,745.1. The Nasdaq Composite eased 84.3 points, or 0.3%, to 26,644.9.
Brent and WTI oil futures each settled 2.7% and 2.6% higher, respectively, as fading hopes for a diplomatic resolution to the Iran conflict raised concerns about potential disruptions to global crude supplies.
Investors also remained cautious ahead of earnings from major retailers. Home Depot is scheduled to report on Tuesday (Wednesday AEST), followed by Walmart on Thursday (Friday AEST).
The results are expected to offer further insight into consumer spending and the broader U.S. economy.
Major technology stocks mostly ended lower, with Google parent Alphabet falling 0.6%, Microsoft losing 3%, Meta Platforms declining 3.5% and Tesla slipping 0.9%.
Chipmakers provided some support for the broader market, with Micron Technology rising 4% and Applied Materials climbing 5.5%.
Investors are also looking ahead to Nvidia's results next week, with the leading AI chipmaker remaining the world's most valuable company.
On the bond markets, the 10-year and two-year Treasury yields rose 0.7% and 0.3%, respectively, to 4.726% and 4.182%.
