WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Stocks initially extended yesterday's rally in early trading on Tuesday but have given back ground over the course of the session. The major averages have pulled back well off their highs of the session and into negative territory.
Currently, the major averages are off their lows of the session but still in the red. The Dow is down 143.42 points or 0.3 percent at 44,030.22, the Nasdaq is down 83.34 points or 0.4 percent at 20,970.24 and the S&P 500 is down 27.46 points or 0.4 percent at 6,302.48.
The downturn on Wall Street may partly reflect ongoing trade concerns following President Donald Trump's latest comments on tariffs.
In an interview on CNBC's 'Squawk Box,' Trump said he will be announcing new tariffs on semiconductors and chips as soon as next week, 'because we want them made in the United States.'
Trump also told CNBC planned tariffs on pharmaceuticals imported into the U.S. could eventually reach as high as 250 percent.
Negative sentiment may also have been generated in reaction to a report from the Institute for Supply Management unexpectedly showing a modest slowdown in the pace of growth by U.S. service sector activity in the month of July.
The ISM said its services PMI edged down to 50.1 in July from 50.8 in June. While a reading above 50 still indicates growth, economists had expected the index to rise to 51.5.
Early in the session, stocks benefitted from a positive reaction to some of the latest earnings news, including upbeat quarterly results from software company Palantir (PLTR).
Shares of Palantir are surging by 8.4 percent after the company said its sales jumped almost 50 percent in the second quarter amid robust demand for artificial intelligence services.
Sector News
Airline stocks have come under considerable selling pressure over the course of the session, dragging the NYSE Arca Airline Index down by 2.3 percent.
Significant weakness has also emerged among semiconductor stocks, as reflected by the 1.4 percent loss being posted by the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index.
Banking and computer hardware stocks have also shown notable moves to the downside, while gold stocks are moving higher along with the price of the precious metal.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Tuesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index climbed by 0.6 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index advanced by 1.0 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets have turned mixed on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index is down by 0.1 percent, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.2 percent and the German DAX Index is up by 0.3 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries are showing a lack of direction after trending higher over the past few sessions. Currently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is unchanged at 4.198 percent.
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