02:17 PM EST, 11/18/2025 (MT Newswires) -- US benchmark equity indexes were lower intraday, weighed down by technology giants Microsoft ( MSFT ) and Amazon.com ( AMZN ) as traders parsed remarks by a Federal Reserve official.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.6% at 46,310.8 after midday Tuesday, while the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.5% to 22,593.3. The S&P 500 dropped 0.2% to 6,657.5. Among sectors, consumer discretionary saw the biggest decline, while health care paced the gainers.

In company news, Microsoft ( MSFT ) and Amazon ( AMZN ) shares fell more than 3% each, among the worst performers on the Dow and the S&P 500. The European Commission launched multiple investigations into the two tech heavyweights' cloud computing services.

Nvidia's ( NVDA ) shares were down 1.4% intraday. The chipmaking giant is scheduled to report its latest quarterly financial results Wednesday.

Meta Platforms ( META ) and Tesla (TSLA) shares were also down after midday Tuesday.

Home Depot's ( HD ) fiscal third-quarter earnings unexpectedly decreased year over year, while the home-improvement retailer lowered its bottom-line outlook for the full year. Home Depot ( HD ) shares were down 4.5%, the steepest decline on the Dow and among the worst on the S&P 500.

Medtronic ( MDT ) was the top gainer on the S&P 500, up 5.8%, after the medical device maker raised its full-year outlook and logged stronger-than-expected quarterly results amid broad-based revenue gains.

US Treasury yields were mixed intraday, with the 10-year rate little changed at 4.13% and the two-year rate dropping 2.3 basis points to 3.59%.

Inflation is unlikely to accelerate much from here on out as consumers trade down and cut back on expenses amid high prices, Richmond Fed President Tom Barkin said Tuesday.

While inflation remains elevated, driven by factors including high goods prices, there are positive signs such as easing shelter price growth and low oil prices, Barkin, who is not a voting member of the Federal Open Market Committee this year, said.

"Our outreach leads me to believe inflation remains somewhat elevated but isn't likely to increase much," Barkin said. "We hear consumers are trading down, pushing back on higher prices by moving to private label, repairing rather than replacing, and shopping at value-priced retailers. We also hear they are trading off, maybe paying for a new phone by forgoing a vacation."

The odds of a 25-basis-point reduction in interest rates by the Fed next month rose to about 49% Tuesday from 42% Monday, according to the CME FedWatch tool.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil was up 1.2% at $60.64 a barrel intraday.

In economic news, US homebuilder confidence moved up this month amid lower mortgage rates, though market and broader headwinds persist, data from the National Association of Home Builders and Wells Fargo showed.

"We continue to see demand-side weakness as a softening labor market and stretched consumer finances are contributing to a difficult sales environment," NAHB Chief Economist Robert Dietz said. "After a decline for single-family housing starts in 2025, NAHB is forecasting a slight gain in 2026 as builders continue to report future sales conditions in marginally positive territory."

Gold was down 0.1% at $4,072.60 per troy ounce, while silver fell 0.2% to $50.59 per ounce.