US open: Stocks lower following Presidents Day break

(Sharecast News) - Major indices were in the red early on Tuesday following yesterday's President's Day break. As of 1510 GMT, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.27% at 44,462.57, while the S&P 500 lost 0.02% to 6,113.61 and the Nasdaq Composite came out the gate 0.03% weaker at 10,020.48.

The Dow opened 119.51 points lower on Tuesday, extending losses recorded in the previous session as Donald Trump's plans for "reciprocal tariffs" on a number of America's biggest trading partners were in focus.

Traders returned from the long weekend with their attention still turned to Washington on Tuesday, with all eyes focused on the White House as they hoped for further updates on the Trump administration's tariff plans.

On the macro front, the New York Federal Reserve's Empire State manufacturing index surged 18.3 points to +5.7 in February, easily beating expectations for a reading of -1. New orders and shipments grew, while employment levels fell, delivery times lengthened and supply availability decreased. Most notably though, optimism about future business conditions dropped significantly.

Elsewhere, the National Association of Housebuilders' housing market index fell to 42 in February, down from 47 in January for the lowest reading in the last five months. Concerns regarding tariffs, elevated mortgage rates and high housing costs weighed on the gauge.

"While builders hold out hope for pro-development policies, particularly for regulatory reform, policy uncertainty and cost factors created a reset for 2025 expectations in the most recent HM. Uncertainty on the tariff front helped push builders' expectations for future sales volume down to the lowest level since December 2023. Incentive use may also be weakening as a sales strategy as elevated interest rates reduce the pool of eligible home buyers", said NAHB chairman Carl Harris.

In the corporate space, Occidental Petroleum and Arista Networks were both slated to report earnings on Tuesday.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com

Dow Jones - Risers

Nike Inc. (NKE) $75.23 2.99% Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $65.60 2.92% Intel Corp. (INTC) $25.26 2.18% Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $9.97 2.10% Boeing Co. (BA) $186.58 1.17% Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $240.22 0.81% Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $665.58 0.76% Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $164.01 0.69% Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $409.60 0.66% Apple Inc. (AAPL) $244.46 0.51%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $511.96 -2.21% Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $108.98 -1.27% McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $305.80 -0.89% Home Depot Inc. (HD) $406.40 -0.76% Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $292.32 -0.74% Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $155.07 -0.69% Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $325.09 -0.44% Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $82.66 -0.42% Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $351.97 -0.38% Walmart Inc. (WMT) $103.78 -0.25%

S&P 500 - Risers

Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR) $1.02 12.01% Bath & Body Works, Inc. (BBWI) $39.16 7.38% Constellation Brands Inc. Class A (STZ) $171.94 5.52% Entergy Corp. (ETR) $87.03 5.50% Fortinet Inc. (FTNT) $114.12 4.26% Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $141.38 3.64% Estee Lauder Co. Inc. (EL) $71.08 3.48% United Airlines Holdings Inc (UAL) $104.93 3.15% Western Digital Corp. (WDC) $70.43 3.14% Nike Inc. (NKE) $75.23 2.99%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Medtronic Plc (MDT) $86.51 -6.79% ConAgra Brands Inc (CAG) $23.74 -6.09% Leggett & Platt Inc. (LEG) $9.94 -4.88% General Mills Inc. (GIS) $56.58 -3.84% Allegion (ALLE) $128.34 -3.79% Fluor Corp. (FLR) $41.79 -3.71% TripAdvisor Inc. (TRIP) $17.39 -3.68% Genuine Parts Co. (GPC) $120.65 -3.40% Idexx Laboratories Inc. (IDXX) $444.50 -3.32% Regency Centers Corp. (REG) $72.62 -3.23%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $141.38 3.64% Western Digital Corp. (WDC) $70.43 3.14% Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $103.22 2.96% Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $65.60 2.92% Liberty Global plc Series A (LBTYA) $11.23 2.61% Wynn Resorts Ltd. (WYNN) $90.24 2.52% Intel Corp. (INTC) $25.26 2.18% Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $9.97 2.10% J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc. (JBHT) $170.35 2.10% American Airlines Group (AAL) $16.09 2.09%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Baidu Inc. (BIDU) $90.47 -8.24% Trip.com Group Limited (TCOM) $66.42 -6.29% JD.com, Inc. (JD) $39.19 -5.22% Idexx Laboratories Inc. (IDXX) $444.50 -3.32% Asml Holdings N.V. (ASML) $748.76 -3.24% Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT) $169.60 -3.03% Autodesk Inc. (ADSK) $293.68 -2.90% Biogen Inc (BIIB) $137.56 -2.54% KLA-Tencor Corp. (KLAC) $739.08 -2.49% Mondelez International Inc. (MDLZ) $60.63 -2.41%