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Indexes: Dow down 0.08%, S&P 500 up 0.12%, Nasdaq up 0.19%

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UnitedHealth ( UNH ) forecasts annual profit below expectations

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Spotify ( SPOT ) falls after forecasting Q3 profit below estimates

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Fed starts two-day meeting later in the day

(Updates with analyst comment, market open prices)

By Nikhil Sharma and Pranav Kashyap

July 29 (Reuters) -

The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq touched fresh record highs on

Tuesday as investors assessed a spate of earnings and turned

their focus to the U.S. Federal Reserve's much anticipated

policy meeting.

At 10:07 a.m. ET, the Dow fell 0.08%, to 44,803.16,

the S&P 500 gained 7.45 points, or 0.12%, to 6,397.42,

and the Nasdaq Composite gained 40.19 points, or 0.19%,

to 21,218.78.

The blue-chip index was currently about 200 points below

its record peak.

Key Dow components UnitedHealth ( UNH ) and Boeing ( BA )

reported mixed quarterly results on the day. Health

insurer UnitedHealth ( UNH ) fell 4.2% after a disappointing profit

forecast, while Boeing ( BA ) lost 2.7% despite reporting a smaller

second-quarter loss.

UnitedHealth's ( UNH ) stock has lost nearly half its value from

the beginning of 2025. On the day, the healthcare index

lagged other sectors and was down 1.1%.

Meanwhile, United Parcel Service ( UPS ) became the

latest

victim

of U.S. President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs as the

stock tumbled 8% after the company reported a

lower-than-expected second-quarter profit.

The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq were largely aided this week by a

U.S.-EU trade deal that halved tariffs to 15% and boosted

expectations of more agreements ahead of Trump's August 1

deadline. Trump has also floated a potential "world tariff" of

15% to 20% for non-negotiating countries.

Key negotiations between the U.S. and China entered their

second day in Stockholm as the two leading economies aim to iron

out their trade conflict and possibly produce a 90-day extension

to the tariff truce brokered in May.

Meanwhile, India was

preparing

for higher U.S. tariffs - potentially as high as 25% - on

some exports as it opts to hold the line on new trade

concessions ahead of Washington's deadline, according to two

Indian government sources.

The International Monetary Fund was

looking at the details

of the trade agreements the United States has struck in

recent days to assess their economic impact.

Earnings from tech heavyweights Meta, Microsoft ( MSFT )

, Amazon ( AMZN ) and Apple ( AAPL ) are scheduled later

this week, which could test Wall Street's record run.

Spotify ( SPOT ) slumped 10% after the company forecast

third-quarter profit below estimates.

Meanwhile, consumer confidence in July increased more

than expected to 97.2. U.S. job openings fell to 7.437 million

in June, JOLTS data showed. However, recent data has shown

resilience in the labor market despite initial signs of

inflation from tariffs.

"It looks like companies are tightening up their hiring.

The proportion that it dropped wasn't large, but it's not in the

right direction," said Kim Forrest, chief investment officer at

Bokeh Capital Partners.

The U.S. central bank is set to begin its two-day policy

meeting later in the day. While the Fed is expected to leave

rates unchanged on Wednesday, traders will closely analyze

policymakers' remarks to gauge the timing of future moves.

According to the CME FedWatch tool, markets are pricing in

about a 63.6% chance of a rate cut in September.

Among other earnings-related moves, Cadence Design ( CDNS )

rose 10% after the chip design software provider raised its

annual sales and profit forecast.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.5-to-1 ratio

on the NYSE, while declining issues outnumbered advancers by a

1.17-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P 500 posted 29 new 52-week highs and nine new

lows, while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 53 new highs and 34

new lows.