02:22 PM EDT, 07/30/2024 (MT Newswires) -- US benchmark equity indexes were mixed intraday as the Federal Reserve's two-day monetary policy meeting got underway and investors awaited Microsoft's ( MSFT ) financial results.

The Nasdaq Composite was down 1.6% at 17,103.7 after midday Tuesday, while the S&P 500 fell 0.8% to 5,422.5. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2% to 40,613.8. Among sectors, technology saw the steepest decline, while energy paced the gainers.

The central bank's Federal Open Market Committee is scheduled to announce its latest monetary policy decision Wednesday. Markets are widely expecting policymakers to hold interest rates steady, according to the CME FedWatch tool.

Investors will be focused on the FOMC's statement and Fed Chair Jerome Powell's press conference "for any indication or lean towards" a rate cut in September, Stifel said in a Tuesday note to clients. "July is too soon for a policy adjustment, and even with September back on the table, a very compelling case would have to be made in the July and August (inflation) data," the brokerage wrote.

The US two-year yield fell 3.7 basis points to 4.35% intraday, while the 10-year rate lost 3.2 basis points to 4.14%.

Tech giant Microsoft ( MSFT ) is scheduled to report its latest quarterly financial results after Tuesday's closing bell, along with Advanced Micro Devices ( AMD ) and others.

In company news, Merck ( MRK ) lowered its 2024 earnings guidance to reflect the costs tied to its Eyebiotech acquisition despite slightly raising its revenue outlook midpoint, while posting stronger-than-expected second-quarter results. The company's shares were down 9.1%, the steepest decline on the Dow and the second-worst on the S&P 500.

Procter & Gamble ( PG ) was the second-worst performer on the Dow, down 5.5%, after the consumer goods company's earnings rose year over year during the fiscal fourth quarter while revenue fell as pricing and volume gains were offset by foreign-currency headwinds.

CrowdStrike ( CRWD ) shares were down nearly 11%, the biggest drop on the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq. Delta Air Lines ( DAL ) has hired attorney David Boies to pursue potential damages from CrowdStrike ( CRWD ) and Microsoft ( MSFT ) following a global tech outage earlier this month, CNBC reported late Monday. Microsoft ( MSFT ) shares were down 1.8% intraday Tuesday, among the worst performers on the Dow.

PayPal ( PYPL ) was the top gainer on the Nasdaq and among the best on the S&P 500, up 8.5%, after the digital payments company reported stronger-than-expected increases in second-quarter results and sweetened its 2024 earnings guidance.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil fell 1% to $75.03 a barrel intraday.

In economic news, US home prices increased in May at a similar sequential pace as that in the previous month, while the annual measure slowed down, S&P Global ( SPGI ) division S&P Dow Jones Indices said.

Separately, the Federal Housing Finance Agency said home prices were unchanged on a seasonally adjusted basis in May, following the previous month's upwardly revised reading showing a 0.3% increase. The consensus was for a 0.2% rise in a survey compiled by Bloomberg.

Gold was up 1.2% at $2,406.20 per troy ounce, while silver jumped 2.3% to $28.50 per ounce.