01:14 PM EDT, 04/17/2024 (MT Newswires) -- US equity indexes fell after midday on Wednesday as the earnings onslaught continued and investors weighed Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's recent comments on inflation.

The S&P 500 slid 0.8% to 5,013.4, with the Nasdaq Composite down 1.2% to 15,676.7 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average 0.4% lower at 37,663.2. Technology, industrials, and consumer discretionary led the decliners intraday. The utilities sector was the top gainer.

United Airlines (UAL) late Tuesday reported a smaller-than-expected Q1 loss while updating its long-term fleet strategy to smooth out the aircraft delivery schedule. Shares climbed 14% intraday, the top performer on the S&P 500.

The worst performer was J.B. Hunt Transport Services (JBHT), down more than 8% intraday, after Q1 results late Tuesday trailed expectations, and as Morgan Stanley said competition within intermodal and trucking will hamper the company's capacity utilization in the near term.

Shares of Travelers (TRV) tumbled 8.1% intraday, among the worst performers on the S&P 500 and the Dow, after the property and casualty insurer reported weaker-than-expected results for Q1 amid higher catastrophe losses.

ASML Holding ( ASML ) slumped 7.8% intraday, the laggard on the Nasdaq, after reporting lower fiscal Q1 earnings and net sales.

On Tuesday, Chair Powell said it will likely take longer than anticipated for US inflation to sustainably return to its 2% target.

"Powell was clear, the Fed intends to stay on the sidelines longer than expected, given the unexpected increase in recent inflation data," Stifel Chief Economist Lindsey Piegza said in a note Wednesday. "The Committee still needs more time - and evidence - to regain confidence inflation is trending back down in a sustained manner."

In economic news, mortgage applications rose for the second consecutive week even though rates increased across all loan types, the Mortgage Bankers Association said Wednesday. The market composite index gained 3.3% for the week ended April 12 on a seasonally adjusted basis. That's after a 0.1% increase the week before.

The US 10-year yield fell 6.4 basis points to 4.6%. A 3.8 basis-point decline in the two-year Treasury pushed the yield to 4.93%.

Meanwhile, West Texas Intermediate crude oil slumped 2.9% to $82.86 a barrel.

"Oil prices go about their business of unwinding some of the war premium that has been priced-in due to the continuing tensions surrounding the Gaza conflict and the subsequent Iranian missile onslaught on Israel," PVM Oil Associates said.

US commercial crude oil stocks, excluding inventories in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, rose 2.7 million barrels during the week ended April 12, following a 5.8-million-barrel gain in the previous week and compared with a 1.7-million-barrel increase expected in a survey compiled by Bloomberg.

Gold was down almost 1% to $2,384.7 per ounce, while silver was fractionally lower at $28.37.