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

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Automakers, chip firms cut losses on Mexico tariff delay

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Triumph Group jumps after co to go private in $3 bln deal

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Wall Street's "fear gauge" falls back from one-week high

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Indexes down: Dow 0.13%, S&P 500 0.60%, Nasdaq 0.98%

(Updates with mid-session trading levels)

By Shashwat Chauhan

Feb 3 (Reuters) -

Wall Street's main indexes pared losses on Monday, as U.S.

President Donald Trump paused new tariffs on Mexico for one

month after his orders to levy steep tariffs on key trading

partners sparked a global scramble to safe-haven assets earlier

in the session.

Over the weekend, Trump imposed hefty new tariffs of 25% on

imports from Mexico and Canada, and 10% on China - which he said

may cause "short-term" pain for Americans.

Trump's announcement on Mexico came after the country agreed

on Monday to reinforce its northern border with 10,000 National

Guard members to stem the flow of illegal drugs, particularly

fentanyl.

Talking about the negotiations with Mexico, Steve

Sosnick, chief market analyst at Interactive Brokers, said this

"raises the possibility that there's some negotiating room with

either Canada, China or both."

"Its much more encouraging to the markets there's this

pause and that is that is exactly why the market shot higher."

At 11:18 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average

fell 59.33 points, or 0.13%, to 44,485.33, the S&P 500

lost 36.31 points, or 0.60%, to 6,004.22 and the Nasdaq

Composite lost 191.91 points, or 0.98%, to 19,435.53.

Most S&P sectors turned higher, with defensive ones such as

health care and consumer staples leading

gains.

Other megacap and growth stocks were also off session lows,

with Nvidia ( NVDA ) now down 2.3%, while a gauge of

semiconductor stocks was now only down 1%.

Legacy automakers - who had been roiled by the impending

tariffs - also recouped most of their losses with both Ford

and General Motors ( GM ) down over 1% each.

The economically sensitive Russell 2000 smallcaps index

recovered from its three-week low, now down 0.9% on the

day.

Treasury yields edged down as investors fled to safer assets

such as bonds and gold. Spot gold scaled an all-time

high.

The Cboe Volatility Index, known as Wall Street's

"fear gauge", dropped back from its highest level in a week,

last at 17.72 points.