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markets, click or type LIVE/ in a news window.)

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Indexes: Dow up 0.33%, S&P 500 down 0.34%, Nasdaq down

1.5%

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Dollar Tree ( DLTR ) up on sale of Family Dollar business

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GameStop ( GME ) climbs on bitcoin bet, higher Q4 profit

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Barclays cuts S&P 500 2025 target

(Updates to after markets open)

By Pranav Kashyap and Johann M Cherian

March 26 (Reuters) -

The benchmark S&P 500 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq declined in

choppy trading on Wednesday, with investors exercising caution

as they awaited economic data and clarity on the Trump

administration's fresh tariffs that are expected to take effect

next week.

U.S. equities experienced a brief reprieve over the last two

sessions, following President Donald Trump's indication that not

all tariffs would be enforced by the April 2 deadline, with

certain nations potentially being granted exemptions-though

specifics remain elusive.

This offered a semblance of stability to Wall Street, with

the trio of major indexes touching two week highs earlier in the

week. The S&P has ascended over 4% since its mid-March lows,

while the Nasdaq has advanced roughly 6%.

Nevertheless, ambiguity surrounding the magnitude of U.S.

tariffs, the likelihood of retaliatory measures from trading

partners, and the potential repercussions on the global economy

and businesses have kept investors vigilant.

Adding to the unease, Barclays revised its S&P 500 target

downward to 5,900 points from 6,600 due to uncertainty

surrounding Trump's tariffs.

"The market is now on hold. (Trump's softened tariff

stance) seems to have made a temporary relief," said Peter

Cardillo, chief market economist at Spartan Capital Securities.

Investors "are going to be sensitive to tariffs ... the

White House keeps changing its position, creating uncertainty."

At 9:58 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average

rose 141.30 points, or 0.33%, to 42,728.80, the S&P 500

lost 19.38 points, or 0.34%, to 5,757.73 and the Nasdaq

Composite lost 179.23 points, or 0.98%, to 18,092.63.

The S&P 500 was weighed down by heavy-weight growth

stocks. Tesla fell 3.2%, Nvidia ( NVDA ) dropped 3.5%

and Alphabet declined 1.5%.

On the other hand, an index that assigns an equal weight

to all companies on the benchmark index edged up 0.3%.

Seven of the 11 S&P 500 sectors advanced, led by

energy's 1.3% rise. Crude prices climbed as investors

priced in tighter global supply following the U.S. threat of

tariffs on nations buying Venezuelan oil.

The main focus of this week will be the personal

consumption expenditures price index - the Federal Reserve's

favored inflation gauge - due on Friday.

Concerns around inflation have pushed consumer confidence to

its lowest in over four years, while analysts have said that a

prolonged slump in dealmaking activity is likely to spark a wave

of job cuts on Wall Street.

Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee said that it may take

longer than anticipated for the next cut because of economic

uncertainty, according to a report.

Speeches from policymakers including Neel Kashkari and

Alberto Musalem are anticipated later in the day.

Both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq tumbled

10% from their respective record highs earlier this month - a

phenomenon known as a correction.

Dollar Tree ( DLTR ) rose 3.8% after the discount-retail

chain said it is nearing a sale of its Family Dollar business to

a consortium of private equity investors for about $1 billion.

Excluding the Family Dollar banner, the company reported

quarterly net sales marginally higher than the previous year's

figure.

GameStop ( GME ) jumped 9.8% following its board's unanimous

approval to incorporate bitcoin as a treasury reserve asset.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.04-to-1 ratio

on the NYSE and declining issues outnumbered advancers by a

1.42-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P 500 posted 13 new 52-week highs and two new

lows, while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 20 new highs and 70

new lows.