US stocks today: S&P 500, Nasdaq advance as oil eases ahead of Fed decision

US stocks traded higher on Tuesday, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq gaining as softer oil prices offered some relief to investors ahead of the Federal Reserve's policy decision and a busy week of corporate earnings, Reuters reported.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average, however, remained under pressure, weighed partly by a decline in Sherwin Williams after the paintmaker reported a quarterly profit miss.

At 9:57 a.m. ET, the Dow was down 0.14% at 52,287.66, while the S&P 500 gained 0.16% to 7,689.22. The Nasdaq Composite rose 0.38% to 26,267.46.

Oil eases as Fed decision nears

Brent crude fell for a second straight session in volatile trading, although prices remained close to their highest level since late April, according to Reuters. The retreat in oil prices helped support risk appetite as investors assessed the outlook for inflation and interest rates.

The Federal Reserve is widely expected to hold rates steady on Wednesday following an increase last month. Markets are also pricing in at least two more hikes by mid 2027, as key inflation indicators remain elevated amid the ongoing US Iran conflict.

Six of the 11 major S&P 500 sectors were higher, led by technology, while energy stocks lagged.

Megacap and growth stocks were mixed. Tesla rose nearly 3%, extending its more than 5% gain in the previous session. Chip stocks advanced 1.8% for a third straight session, while neocloud companies CoreWeave and Nebius also climbed.

AI trade faces earnings test

The focus on AI remained intense as investors looked ahead to earnings from Alphabet, Microsoft and Amazon later this week. Their results are expected to offer clues on whether heavy AI spending is translating into stronger growth.

Meta fell 1.1% after raising its planned equity fundraising to $97.5 billion to support its AI expansion. Nvidia, Advanced Micro Devices and Broadcom have shown interest of up to $5 billion in total, adding to scrutiny around the financing of the AI investment boom.

"If we see positive surprises and (earnings) raises on any of these AI stocks that are reporting from now until the Anthropic IPO, I think it's a very positive environment for the companies," said Peter Andersen, founder of Andersen Capital Management, according to Reuters.

Anthropic's IPO filing on Monday has added another major focus for AI investors, as the company moves towards a potentially record breaking listing while disclosing steep losses and security concerns.

Elsewhere, Boeing fell 1.8% after reporting a bigger than expected third quarter loss, while Xylem dropped 8.8% after trimming its full year forecasts. Royal Caribbean gained 6.5% after raising its full year profit forecast, while General Motors rose 5% after announcing plans to switch its stock listing to Nasdaq, Reuters reported.

(Disclaimer: This article is based on inputs from agencies. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)