02:11 PM EDT, 09/04/2024 (MT Newswires) -- US benchmark equity indexes were mostly lower intraday as markets analyzed remarks by a Federal Reserve official and the latest economic data.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 were down 0.2% each at 40,876.1 and 5,520.8, respectively, after midday Wednesday, while the Nasdaq Composite was little changed at 17,135.8. Among sectors, energy saw the steepest decline, while utilities led the gainers.

Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic said policymakers cannot afford to wait for inflation to drop to their 2% target before beginning to reduce interest rates as that would risk "labor market disruptions."

Bostic said that although his confidence about inflation has strengthened, he's "not quite prepared" to declare victory yet. "History shouts to us that loosening monetary policy prematurely is a dangerous gambit that can rekindle inflation and entrench it in the economy for many months or even years," he added.

The US two-year yield slumped 10.3 basis points to 3.79% intraday, while the 10-year rate dropped 6.4 basis points to 3.78%.

In economic news, US job openings fell to about 7.67 million in July from 7.91 million the previous month, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The consensus on Bloomberg was for an 8.1 million print.

Mortgage applications in the US increased for the second consecutive week as rates across most loan types declined, the Mortgage Bankers Association said.

In company news, Dollar Tree ( DLTR ) shares plunged nearly 23%, the worst performer on the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq, as the bargain store chain's fiscal second-quarter earnings unexpectedly slid year over year, while sales missed estimates amid macro pressures on consumers.

Zscaler ( ZS ) saw the second-steepest decline on the Nasdaq, down 18%. The cloud security company's 2025 earnings outlook missed Wall Street's estimates late Tuesday even as it logged stronger-than-expected fiscal fourth-quarter results.

Tesla (TSLA) was the best performer on the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq intraday Wednesday, up 4.7%. The electric vehicle maker plans to produce a six-seat variant of its Model Y car in China from late 2025, Reuters reported Tuesday, citing unnamed sources.

Copart ( CPRT ) , Hewlett Packard Enterprise ( HPE ) and Caseys General Stores ( CASY ) are among the companies scheduled to report their latest quarterly financial results after Wednesday's closing bell.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil fell 1.2% to $69.49 a barrel intraday.

Gold was up 0.1% at $2,525.40 per troy ounce, while silver rose 0.7% to $28.54 per ounce.