US Stocks Finish Mixed
2026-03-24 20:01
By
Felipe Alarcon
1 min. read
The S&P 500 closed 0.2%lower, the Nasdaq dropped 0.6%, while the Dow was mostly unchanged on Tuesday, as a resurgent energy rally and conflicting Middle East headlines stalled previous momentum.
Geopolitical uncertainty grew as Iranian state media denied President Trump's claims of productive talks despite his assertions of ongoing negotiations to end the four-week conflict.
This skepticism pushed Brent crude above $104 per barrel fueling a 2% jump in the energy sector which remains the sole S&P 500 group in positive territory for March.
High-growth AI firms including Oracle and Microsoft faced selling pressure with Oracle shedding 4.7% despite analysts maintaining bullish targets.
Retail participation hit an inflection point as everyday traders became net sellers for the first time since 2023 while Jefferies gained 2.5% on reports of a potential takeover bid by Sumitomo.