US open: Mixed start to trading, S&P 500 slips from record-highs

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Wall Street trading got off to a mixed start on Tuesday after the S&P 500 slipped from its all-time high in the previous session.

As of 1555 GMT, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.38% at 38,919.19, while the S&P 500 was flat at 5,069.77 and the Nasdaq Composite came out the gate 0.22% firmer at 16,015.80.

The Dow opened 150.04 points lower on Tuesday, extending losses recorded in the previous session.

Tuesday's primary focus was news that consumer confidence had retreated in February, according to the Conference Board, falling to 106.7 from a revised print of 110.9 for January. With January's print being revised downward from the preliminary reading of 114.8, the report also indicates that there was no material breakout to the upside in confidence at the beginning of 2024. The present situation index fell back to 147.2 in February from 154.9 in January, while the expectations index slipped to 79.8, down from a revised 81.5 in January.

The report comes as traders look to gain some insight into consumers' thinking ahead of the week's all-important consumption expenditure price index on Thursday. Market participants will be closely watching these releases for any hints as to the state of the US economy and for clues as to the potential future path of monetary policy.

Elsewhere on the macro front, durable goods orders shrank rapidly at the start of 2024, mainly due to a more than halving in those for defence aircraft and parts. According to the Department of Commerce, in seasonally adjusted terms durable goods orders dropped at a month-on-month pace of 6.1% in January to reach $276.65bn (consensus: -4.5%).

On another note, US house price inflation picked up at the end of 2023, pushing prices further into record territory. In non-seasonally adjusted terms, the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller US national home price index accelerated to a year-on-year pace of 5.5% in December, after rising by 5.0% during the month before. December's gain marked the seventh consecutive record reading for prices.

Finally, the monthly manufacturing index from the Dallas Federal Reserve Bank increased to -11.3 in February, up from an eight-month low of -27.4 in January, while the Richmond Fed's manufacturing index increased to -5 in February from -15 in January.

In the corporate space, retailers Macy's and Lowe's traded lower on the back of some weak guidance, while Zoom Video delivered quarterly earnings that came in ahead of analysts' expectations.