*

Indexes: Dow down 0.39%, S&P 500 off 0.06%, Nasdaq up

0.15%

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Tesla drops as European sales slump continues

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FedEx ( FDX ), General Mills ( GIS ) shares slide after disappointing

profit

forecasts

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Micron results due after the bell

(Updates to afternoon)

By Stephen Culp

June 25 (Reuters) - Wall Street was mixed on Wednesday

as the tenuous Israel-Iran ceasefire continued to hold and

investors pored over a second day of congressional testimony

from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.

Tech shares lifted the Nasdaq slightly higher,

while the S&P 500 was nominally lower, but still hovering within

striking distance of its record closing high reached on February

19.

The blue-chip Dow was in negative territory.

"We are within 1% of a new all-time high," said Sam Stovall,

chief investment strategist of CFRA Research in New York. "And

new all-time highs act like rusty doors, which require several

attempts before finally swinging open."

Among the 11 major sectors of the S&P 500, only

communication services, technology, and energy

were up on the day. Defensives such as real estate and

utilities underperformed the broader market.

The fragile truce between Israel and Iran continued to hold,

with U.S. President Donald Trump declaring victory despite a

lack of clarity regarding the extent of the damage U.S. strikes

had on Iran's uranium enrichment assets.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell, in his second straight day of

congressional testimony, reiterated to the Senate Banking

Committee that the central bank is well-positioned to wait to

cut interest rates until the inflationary effects of Trump's

wide-ranging tariffs are better known.

"(Investors are) listening for sound bites that Trump could

explode over," Stovall added. "Because the president wants to

cut interest rates and the Fed is saying no, we're going to be

data dependent."

"Investors will be listening for any kind of a hint from

Powell that maybe (the Fed) won't wait until September to cut

interest rates," Stovall said.

Financial markets are pricing in almost a 25% likelihood of

a rate cut at the July policy meeting, and a 67% probability

that the first cut will arrive in September, according to CME's

FedWatch tool.

Housing data on Wednesday showed new home sales plunged

13.7% and applications for loans to buy homes dipped as mortgage

rates edged higher.

On Thursday, the Commerce Department is due to issue its

final take on first-quarter GDP, and its Personal Consumption

Expenditures (PCE) report on Friday will provide insights into

consumer spending and inflation.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 168.40 points,

or 0.39%, to 42,920.62, the S&P 500 lost 3.70 points, or

0.06%, to 6,088.48 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 29.93

points, or 0.15%, to 19,942.46.

Tesla shares fell 4.4% as its European sales

slumped for the fifth month.

Economic uncertainty continues to weigh on corporate

guidance.

FedEx ( FDX ) shares fell 4.0% after the package delivery

company forecast quarterly profit below estimates as tariffs

weighed on global demand. Rival UPS slipped 1.6%.

General Mills ( GIS ) provided disappointing profit

guidance, sending its shares 4.6% lower.

U.S.-listed shares of cybersecurity firm Blackberry

jumped 14.0% on the heels of its revenue forecast hike,

attributed to steady demand.

Micron dipped 0.9% ahead of its quarterly results

after the bell.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 2.09-to-1 ratio

on the NYSE. There were 139 new highs and 55 new lows on the

NYSE.

On the Nasdaq, 1,501 stocks rose and 2,852 fell as declining

issues outnumbered advancers by a 1.9-to-1 ratio.

The S&P 500 posted 22 new 52-week highs and 7 new lows while the

Nasdaq Composite recorded 79 new highs and 56 new lows.