04:15 PM EDT, 03/24/2026 (MT Newswires) -- US equity indexes ended lower on Tuesday as crude oil prices rose anew amid conflicting signals over President Donald Trump's peace talks with Iran.

* Redbook same-store sales last week rose 6.7% from a year earlier after a 6.4% increase in the previous week.

* The Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank's monthly non-manufacturing activity index fell to minus 23.9 in March from minus 17.3 in the previous month, compared with expectations for an increase to minus 15.7 in a Bloomberg survey.

* May West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose $3.50 to settle at $91.63 per barrel, while May Brent crude, the global benchmark, was last seen up $3.54 at $103.48.

* Lumentum ( LITE ) shares rose 10% and Coherent (COHR) gained 8.5%, the top gainers on the S&P 500, after the stocks were added to the index during quarterly rebalancing.

* Estee Lauder ( EL ) shares fell 9.9%, the second-biggest S&P decliner, after the company said late Monday it is in discussions with Spanish beauty and fashion group Puig for a potential merger.