U.S. equities drifted lower into midday Tuesday with the S&amp;P 500 and Nasdaq 100 easing from near record highs set earlier in the session, as a fresh surge in crude oil prices and rising Treasury yields tempered the April rally.



 • State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF shares are advancing steadily. Why are XLE shares climbing?



Pakistan’s information minister said a formal response from Iran confirming whether it will send a delegation to the Islamabad peace talks was still awaited as of midday, leaving traders pricing an uneasy middle ground between a potential diplomatic breakthrough and a re-escalation in the Strait of Hormuz.



WTI crude oil climbed 2.7% to around $90 a barrel, while Brent rose 2.5% to $97.80.



The S&amp;P 500 slipped 0.3% to 7,091, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average gave up 90 points, or 0.2%, to 49,352. 



The CBOE Volatility Index climbed 5.4% to 19.89, reflecting a modest bid for hedges as the session’s risk appetite deteriorated.



The Nasdaq 100 outperformed, shedding just 0.1% to 26,567, as software and semiconductor strength offset weakness elsewhere. 



Within Magnificent Seven stocks, Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) rose about 2% after pledging more than $20 billion in additional investment in AI start-up Anthropic, while Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) slid more than 2% after announcing hardware chief John Ternus will succeed Tim Cook as CEO in December. Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) dropped about 1% heading into its earnings release on Wednesday, while NVIDIA Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA) eased about 0.7%.



The Russell 2000 was the weakest corner of the market, dropping 0.5% to 2,780 as regional banks and transportation names dragged small caps broadly lower.



A second macro focal point emerged on Capitol Hill, where Fed Chair nominee Kevin Warsh opened his confirmation hearing with unusually pointed prepared remarks. Warsh told senators the central bank “needs new tools and new communications,” and called for “a regime change in the conduct of Fed policy” alongside a “new inflation framework.” 



The 10-year Treasury yield advanced roughly four basis points to 4.29%, with the two-year yield rising about six basis points to 3.78% after U.S. retail sales jumped 1.7% in March — the biggest monthly gain since January 2023 — and ADP showed a sharp pickup in private payrolls, underscoring the resilience of the U.S. consumer.



Precious metals sold off sharply, with spot gold falling 1.7% to $4,738 an ounce, while silver fell 4% to $76 an ounce. 



<h2>Tuesday’s Performance In Major U.S. Indices</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-table is-style-stripes"><table><thead><tr><th>Index</th><th>Last</th><th>% Change</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>S&amp;P 500</td><td>7,091.12</td><td>-0.3%</td></tr><tr><td>Dow Jones</td><td>49,352.23</td><td>-0.2%</td></tr><tr><td>Nasdaq 100</td><td>26,567.29</td><td>-0.1%</td></tr><tr><td>Russell 2000</td><td>2,779.59</td><td>-0.5%</td></tr></tbody></table><figcaption>Updated by 12:30 p.m. ET</figcaption></figure>



According to the Benzinga Pro platform:



<ul>
<li>The Vanguard S&amp;P 500 ETF (NYSE:VOO) slipped 0.3%.</li>



<li>The SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (NYSE:DIA) eased 0.2%.</li>



<li>The Invesco QQQ Trust (NASDAQ:QQQ) dipped 0.1%.</li>



<li>The iShares Russell 2000 ETF (NYSE:IWM) fell 0.5%.</li>
</ul>



<h2>Gold Miners Crater, Airlines Grounded As Oil Bids Return</h2>



Energy was the clear leader at the sector level, with the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLE) rising 1.31% as the crude bid fed through to supermajors and services names. 



At the other end, the Real Estate Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLRE) dropped 1.4% as the back-up in yields hit rate-sensitive names, while the Industrials Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLI) fell 1.2%, weighed down by transport and airline exposures. 



At the industry level, the VanEck Oil Services ETF (NYSE:OIH) led the board with a 1.7% gain, followed by the iShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF (BATS:IGV) up 1.4%. 



The SPDR S&amp;P Oil &amp; Gas Exploration &amp; Production ETF (NYSE:XOP) added 2.14%, while the VanEck Semiconductor ETF (NASDAQ:SMH) held a 0.4% gain.



The session’s sharpest damage was concentrated in gold miners. The VanEck Gold Miners ETF (NYSE:GDX) plunged 4.1%, a sharp underperformance versus bullion’s own 1.9% decline. The U.S. Global Jets ETF (NYSE:JETS) sank 2.2% as the spike in crude pressured airline margins, the Vanguard Real Estate ETF (NASDAQ:VNQ) dropped 1.3% on the yield back-up and the SPDR S&amp;P Metals &amp; Mining ETF (NYSE:XME) fell 1.3%.



On the regional banking side, the SPDR S&amp;P Regional Banking ETF (NYSE:KRE) slipped 0.9%. 



<h2>Earnings Aftermath: Good and Bad</h2>



Valmont Industries, Inc. (NYSE:VMI) led the Russell 1000 with a 12.60% surge to $461.52 after the infrastructure and agriculture products maker posted stronger-than-expected results and upbeat guidance. 



Mueller Industries, Inc. (NYSE:MLI) added 8.53% to $131.22 after the copper products maker delivered first-quarter EPS of $2.16 — 45% above the $1.49 consensus — on revenue of $1.193 billion versus $1 billion a year earlier, and hiked its quarterly dividend to 35 cents from 25 cents.



UnitedHealth Group Inc. (NYSE:UNH) rallied over 8% after the insurer posted adjusted first-quarter EPS of $7.23 against a $6.59 consensus, with revenue of $111.7 billion ahead of the $109.44 billion estimate, and raised its 2026 adjusted EPS guidance.



On the downside, Tractor Supply Company (NASDAQ:TSCO) cratered 10.8% to $39.99 after missing first-quarter sales expectations. 



GE Aerospace (NYSE:GE) also tumbled 6% amid disappointing guidance.



<h2>Tuesday’s Russell 1000 Top Gainers</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-table is-style-stripes"><table><thead><tr><th>Name</th><th>% change</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Valmont Industries, Inc.</td><td>+12.60%</td></tr><tr><td>Astera Labs, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALAB)</td><td>+8.80%</td></tr><tr><td>Mueller Industries, Inc.</td><td>+8.53%</td></tr><tr><td>UnitedHealth Group Inc.</td><td>+8.44%</td></tr><tr><td>Lucid Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:LCID)</td><td>+8.06%</td></tr></tbody></table></figure>



<h2>Tuesday’s Russell 1000 Top Losers</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-table is-style-stripes"><table><thead><tr><th>Name</th><th>% change</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Tractor Supply Company</td><td>-10.8%</td></tr><tr><td>FMC Corporation (NYSE:FMC) </td><td>-8.36%</td></tr><tr><td>Loar Holdings Inc. (NYSE:LOAR)</td><td>-7.48%</td></tr><tr><td>FTAI Aviation Ltd. (NASDAQ:FTAI)</td><td>-6.82%</td></tr><tr><td>Inspire Medical Systems, Inc. (NYSE:INSP) </td><td>-6.67%</td></tr></tbody></table></figure>

CRAK

U.S. stocks declined as oil prices surged nearly 3%, with the S&P 500 slipping 0.3% and the Dow Jones down 0.2%. UnitedHealth rose 8% on strong earnings, while concerns over Iran's ceasefire negotiations weighed on market sentiment. The Nasdaq 100 outperformed, dropping only 0.1%. Treasury yields increased, reflecting economic resilience, while precious metals fell sharply. Energy stocks led gains, but gold miners and airlines suffered losses due to rising crude prices. Valmont Industries surged 12.6% after strong earnings, while Tractor Supply dropped 10.8% after missing sales expectations.

- U.S. equities declined as the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 eased from record highs due to rising crude oil prices and Treasury yields, with the S&P 500 falling 0.3% to 7,091.  
- WTI crude oil increased by 2.7% to around $90 a barrel, while the 10-year Treasury yield rose to 4.29%, reflecting investor concerns over inflation and economic indicators.  
- Notable market movers included Amazon.com, which rose 2% after a significant investment in AI, while Tractor Supply Company dropped 10.8% after missing sales expectations.

benzinga_article

Valmont

SPDR Energy Select

Us Brent Oil

SPDR S&P 500

United States Oil Fund LP

VanEck Oil Refiners ETF

VanEck Oil Services ETF

Guggenheim DJIA Ave Div

ISHRS S&P Glb Engy

SPDR O&G Ex & Prd

S&P 500

NASDAQ-100

Dow Jones Industrial Average

Cboe Volatility Index

Amazon

Apple

Tesla

NVIDIA

VG S&P 500

SPDR Djia

Invesco QQQ Trust

iShares Russell 2000

Real Est Select Spdr

Spdr Select Indu

iShares Expanded Tech Software Sector ETF

VanEck Semiconductor ETF

VanEck Gold Miners ETF

Us Global Jets

Vanguard Real Estate ETF

SPDR S&P Mtls & Mng

SPDR S&P Region Bank

Mueller Industries

Unitedhealth

NVIDIA Corporation

S&P 500 Eases On Iran Ceasefire Jitters, Crude Soars To $90: Stock Market Today