(For a Reuters live blog on U.S., UK and European stock

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

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Nvidia ( NVDA ) edges lower ahead of annual software developer

conference

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Tesla slips after RBC lowers price target

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Gold miners gain as bullion prices hit record high

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Indexes down: Dow 0.49%, S&P 500 0.97%, Nasdaq 1.66%

(Updates to after markets open)

By Pranav Kashyap and Johann M Cherian

March 18 (Reuters) - Wall Street's main indexes fell on

Tuesday as markets awaited the Fed's outlook on monetary policy

and developments related to U.S. President Donald Trump's call

with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on ways to end the

three-year war in Ukraine.

The Federal Reserve's two-day rate-setting meeting kicks off

on Tuesday, and expectations are that the central bank will keep

interest rates steady, according to data compiled by LSEG.

Several Fed officials have cautioned against hasty moves,

with policymakers awaiting tangible data on tariff impacts.

"The Fed does not want to front run the potential impact of

policy, especially since it seems to be on and off. It's a

difficult job to walk this tightrope," said Art Hogan, market

strategist at B. Riley.

Trump's tariff measures have sparked a trade tussle with

major U.S. trading partners, prompting swift retaliatory

actions. Analysts said U.S. equities dipped into oversold

territory last week.

At 9:54 a.m. ET the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell

206.06 points, or 0.49%, to 41,635.57, the S&P 500 lost

54.92 points, or 0.97%, to 5,620.20, and the Nasdaq Composite

lost 295.45 points, or 1.66%, to 17,513.21.

Trump will speak to Putin by phone on Tuesday to try to

convince him to accept a ceasefire in the Ukraine war and move

towards a more permanent end to the three-year-old conflict.

The call is expected to take place between 9 a.m. and 11

a.m. ET (1300 GMT to 1500 GMT), the Kremlin and a U.S. official

said.

"If there should be some positive signs (on a Russia-Ukraine

ceasefire), that could reverse the early weakness for markets,"

said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Spartan Capital

Securities.

Nvidia ( NVDA ) fell 3%. The company is expected to reveal

details of its latest AI chip at its annual software developer

conference.

Consumer discretionary stocks led sectoral

declines on the S&P 500 with a 2% drop, weighed down by Tesla

shares.

The EV maker declined 5.9% after brokerage RBC trimmed its

price target on the stock, flagging that the company is losing

market share in China and Europe.

Alphabet fell 4% after the company said it would

buy Wiz for about $32 billion in its biggest deal as the Google

parent doubles down on cybersecurity.

Investors flocked to safe-haven assets, with gold

trading at a record high, after crossing $3,000 per ounce for

the first time last week.

U.S.-listed stocks of gold miners such as Barrick Gold

rose 2% and Gold Fields gained 3.6%.

Markets were also taking a pause after all three major

indexes gained more than 2% each over the past two sessions as

investors capitalized on discounted U.S. equities.

Last week, the S&P 500 tumbled more than 10% from its

February peak, signaling the benchmark index entered a

correction phase.

The blue-chip Dow index is trading close to

correction levels, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq confirmed

it is in a correction on March 6.

On the data front, U.S. single-family homebuilding rebounded

sharply in February.

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

on the NYSE and a 2.9-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P 500 posted three new 52-week highs and one new low,

while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 21 new highs and 75 new

lows.