02:13 PM EDT, 10/15/2025 (MT Newswires) -- US equity indexes were mixed intraday as Wall Street continued to monitor an apparent impasse in trade talks between Washington and China.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.2% at 46,191 after midday Wednesday, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.2% to 22,562.7. The S&P 500 was little changed at 6,645.8. Among sectors, industrials saw the biggest drop, while real estate paced the gainers.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC on Wednesday that recent volatility in the stock market will not prompt Washington to change its trade stance on China.

Separately, Bessent told CNBC that the US will set price floors "across a range of industries" to tackle alleged market manipulation by China.

A deadlock in trade negotiations between the US and China poses new risks to the economic outlook and makes the case for further monetary policy easing even more urgent, CNBC reported, citing Federal Reserve Governor Stephen Miran.

On Tuesday, President Donald Trump threatened to discontinue US purchases of cooking oil from China. The US could impose additional tariffs of 100% on Chinese goods, depending on how Beijing handles a dispute around rare earths, CNBC reported, citing US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer.

"Just when much of the investing public had pushed the tariff issue to the back burner, we received a harsh reminder that the (US) and China, the two biggest economies in the world by far, had yet to really nail down a solid trade deal that markets could count on going forward," Wells Fargo Investment Institute said in a Wednesday client note. "Financial markets are clearly sensitive to the ebb and flow of US and Chinese tariff standoffs and negotiations."

US Treasury yields were higher intraday, with the 10-year rate increasing two basis points to 4.04% and the two-year rate gaining 2.7 basis points to 3.51%.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil fell 0.5% to $58.39 a barrel. "Oil edged lower on the (International Energy Agency's) forecast of a supply surplus by 2026 and renewed US-China trade tensions that could dampen demand," D.A. Davidson said in a note.

In company news, Progressive's (PGR) third-quarter profit rose less than Wall Street's expectations, while the insurance company's combined ratio deteriorated. The company's shares were down 7.1%, the second-steepest decline on the S&P 500.

Morgan Stanley's ( MS ) third-quarter results topped market estimates as the lender recorded double-digit revenue gains in its investment banking and equity trading businesses. The company's shares were up 5.4%, among the top gainers on the S&P 500.

Bank of America ( BAC ) reported stronger-than-expected third-quarter results, buoyed by investment banking and asset management fees. Its shares rose 4.1%.

Hillenbrand's ( HI ) shares surged nearly 18% after the industrial equipment supplier agreed to be acquired and taken private by Lone Star Funds, for an enterprise value of about $3.8 billion.

Meanwhile, a US federal government shutdown dragged on. The Senate was expected to vote on the GOP government funding proposal Wednesday, CNN reported. On Tuesday, Democrats once again blocked a funding proposal over a dispute regarding health care and spending priorities, according to the report.

Gold was up 1% at $4,205.70 per troy ounce, while silver gained 1.7% to $51.47 per ounce.