(Adds price moves and market details after close of trading)

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KB Home ( KBH ) falls after downbeat annual revenue forecast

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Consumer confidence stands at 92.9 in March

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CrowdStrike ( CRWD ) gains after brokerage ups rating

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S&P 500 +0.16%, Nasdaq +0.46%, Dow +0.01%

By Noel Randewich

March 25 (Reuters) - Wall Street stocks ended higher on

Tuesday, with Apple ( AAPL ) rising and Nvidia ( NVDA ) dipping as investors

assessed consumer sentiment data and bet on a more flexible

trade policy stance from the Trump administration next week.

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday that automobile

tariffs were coming soon, while suggesting that not all proposed

tariffs would be enforced in an April 2 announcement on which

Wall Street is focused.

"I don't expect that we'll get the clarity that the market

is hoping for, but investors are desperate for any sort of

clarity on this front, and to the extent they'll get some of it,

it's a huge day," said Ross Mayfield, an investment strategist

at Baird.

Weighed by worries that Trump's tariffs would fuel inflation

and hurt economic growth, the S&P 500 is down about 2% so far in

2025, and it is on track for its first quarterly loss since June

2023.

Ratings agency Moody's said on Tuesday that the United States'

fiscal strength is on track for a continued multiyear decline as

budget deficits widen and debt becomes less affordable.

Another report revealed a dip in consumer confidence, with the

index falling to 92.9 in March - its lowest since February

2021.

Apple ( AAPL ) rose 1.4%, helping keep the Nasdaq in

positive territory, while Nvidia ( NVDA ) slid 0.6%.

Tesla shares rose 3.45%, adding to a 12% rally the previous day.

The company's market share in Europe continued to shrink in

February as sales of the all-electric car maker dropped for a

second month, even as EV registrations overall on the continent

grew.

KB Home ( KBH ) fell over 6% after the homebuilder cut its

full-year 2025 revenue forecast.

The S&P 500 climbed 0.16% to end the session at 5,776.65

points.

The Nasdaq gained 0.46% to 18,271.86 points, while the Dow

Jones Industrial Average rose 0.01% to 42,587.50 points.

Of the 11 S&P 500 sector indexes, seven rose, led by

communication services, up 1.43%, followed by a 0.98%

gain in consumer discretionary.

Fed Governor Adriana Kugler said the central bank's interest

rate policy remains restrictive, but progress on bringing

inflation back to the central bank's 2% target has slowed.

New York Fed President John Williams said firms and households

were "experiencing heightened uncertainty" about what lies ahead

for the economy.

Among a cascade of economic indicators scheduled this week,

focus will be on the personal consumption expenditures price

index - the Fed's preferred inflation gauge - due on Friday.

CrowdStrike ( CRWD ) gained 3.3% after brokerage BTIG raised

its rating on the cybersecurity company to "buy" from "neutral."

Declining stocks outnumbered rising ones within the S&P 500

by a 1.3-to-one ratio.

The S&P 500 posted 11 new highs and 4 new lows; the Nasdaq

recorded 42 new highs and 160 new lows.

Volume on U.S. exchanges was relatively light, with 13.0

billion shares traded, compared with an average of 16.4 billion

shares over the previous 20 sessions.