U.S. stocks drifted lower following mixed data on the economy's strength.
The S&P 500 fell 0.2% Tuesday and remains a bit below its all-time high set last week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.6%, while gains for some big tech stocks nudged the Nasdaq composite up 0.2%.
Treasury yields eased after the reports on the U.S. job market, retail sales and business activity did little to clear uncertainty about where the Federal Reserve may take interest rates next year. Energy stocks fell to some of the market's worst losses after the price for U.S. crude fell to its lowest level since 2021.
On Tuesday:
The S&P 500 fell 16.25 points, or 0.2%, to 6,800.26.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 302.30 points, or 0.6%, to 48,114.26.
The Nasdaq composite rose 54.05 points, or 0.2%, to 23,111.46.
The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 11.36 points, or 0.4%, to 2,519.30.