(Sharecast News) - US stocks finished a choppy session more or less where they started on Tuesday on the back of yet more trade-related nervousness, after Donald Trump said that his new 1 August tariff deadline would not be extended.
The Dow fell 0.14%, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq edged just 0.03% higher, with markets struggling for direction for most of the day.
Over the past few days, president Trump has re-escalated his tariff war against America's trading partners. While the president pushed back the deadline for his blanket 'reciprocal' tariffs from 9 July to 1 August - to be imposed on countries that do not have specific trade deals with the US - he said no new deals will be negotiated after this deadline, implying that no more extensions will be granted.
The Trump administration said it has already sent letters to 14 nations, including Japan and South Korea, with tariffs ranging from 25% to 40% to kick in at the start of next month.
Trump also announced that tariffs on copper imports will also be imposed, in addition to other sector-focused tariffs already in place like those on autos, steel and aluminium.
"Deals or no deals? Donald Trump's tariff deadline might have been pushed back once again but the continued uncertainty isn't doing investors any favours," said Danni Hewson, head of financial analysis at AJ Bell.
"Even if a full-blown trade war can be skirted, the potential impact on the US economy and its consumers won't be fully clear for months or even years to come. Looking at the CME's FedWatch tool, expectation that rate setters might be able to make a move at the next meeting has pretty much petered out."
In economic news, the National Federation of Independent Business on Tuesday reported that its Small Business Optimism Index fell just 0.2 points to 98.6 in June, more or less in line with analysts' expectations. A net 22% of business owners said they expected business conditions to improve, down three percentage points over the month but still well above the historic average of +3%.
Market movers
Tesla edged higher after the stock dropped 7% on Monday following chief executive Elon Musk's announcement that he is launching a new political party.
Apple was trading flat after the news that its top AI executive Ruoming Pang is leaving the company to joint Meta Platforms.
Oracle was higher, extending its recent strong run, after unveiling a series of major cloud-services agreements last week. The stock, which has now risen by a third over the past month, was being helped higher by positive comments from Jefferies on Tuesday, which said it "remains a standout" among large software companies.
Confectionary giant Hershey fell sharply after announcing that Kirk Tanner, the boss of the Wendy's fast food chain, would become its new chief executive.
Dow Jones - Risers
Intel Corp. (INTC) $23.59 7.23%
Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $29.06 5.75%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $153.24 3.96%
Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $273.79 1.43%
Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $297.00 1.38%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $307.70 1.31%
3M Co. (MMM) $153.71 1.25%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $394.29 0.71%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $43.06 0.61%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $81.35 0.58%
Dow Jones - Fallers
Nike Inc. (NKE) $73.92 -3.41%
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $282.78 -3.15%
Walmart Inc. (WMT) $97.09 -2.27%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $697.28 -1.92%
American Express Co. (AXP) $316.98 -1.78%
Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $157.89 -1.63%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $121.93 -1.09%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $70.24 -1.08%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $256.36 -1.00%
International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $290.60 -0.70%
S&P 500 - Risers
Helmerich & Payne Inc. (HP) $17.27 7.60%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $23.59 7.23%
Albemarle Corp. (ALB) $70.21 7.21%
Devon Energy Corp. (DVN) $34.90 6.85%
National Oilwell Varco Inc. (NOV) $13.53 6.13%
Halliburton Co. (HAL) $22.16 6.08%
Apache Corp. (APA) $20.50 5.62%
Occidental Petroleum Corp. (OXY) $45.75 5.54%
LyondellBasell Industries (LYB) $63.72 4.89%
Hess Corp. (HES) $150.23 4.82%
S&P 500 - Fallers
NRG Energy Inc. (NRG) $151.39 -4.68%
Newmont Corporation (NEM) $57.61 -4.24%
AES Corp. (AES) $11.06 -3.91%
Nike Inc. (NKE) $73.92 -3.41%
Hershey Foods Corp. (HSY) $169.93 -3.20%
Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR) $22.73 -3.15%
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $282.78 -3.15%
Dollar General Corp (DG) $112.64 -3.10%
Bank of America Corp. (BAC) $47.15 -3.10%
NextEra Energy Inc. (NEE) $72.46 -3.06%
Nasdaq 100 - Risers
Intel Corp. (INTC) $23.59 7.23%
Microchip Technology Inc. (MCHP) $74.56 4.31%
Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $124.42 3.75%
DENTSPLY Sirona Inc. (XRAY) $16.53 3.70%
Sirius XM Holdings Inc (SIRI) $24.44 3.47%
Biogen Inc (BIIB) $134.46 3.33%
Qvc Group Inc Series A (QVCGA) $2.91 2.83%
Synopsys Inc. (SNPS) $551.51 2.79%
J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc. (JBHT) $153.10 2.37%
Skyworks Solutions Inc. (SWKS) $77.94 2.30%
Nasdaq 100 - Fallers
Seagate Technology Plc (STX) $144.47 -2.64%
Monster Beverage Corp (MNST) $61.59 -2.00%
Amazon.Com Inc. (AMZN) $219.36 -1.84%
Western Digital Corp. (WDC) $64.02 -1.83%
Verisk Analytics Inc. (VRSK) $302.54 -1.83%
Booking Holdings Inc. (BKNG) $5,713.33 -1.76%
Fiserv Inc. (FI) $170.55 -1.67%
Paypal Holdings Inc (PYPL) $75.03 -1.51%
Trip.com Group Limited (TCOM) $60.54 -1.50%
Intuitive Surgical Inc. (ISRG) $527.30 -1.39%
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