03:58 PM EDT, 10/01/2024 (MT Newswires) -- US benchmark equity indexes ended lower Tuesday as Iran launched a ballistic missile attack on Israel in retaliation over the latter's recent killing of Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah and an Iranian commander in Lebanon.

* The US manufacturing sector remained in contraction territory in September amid soft demand and declining employment, according to data from the Institute for Supply Management and S&P Global ( SPGI ) .

"Combined with the (Federal Reserve) embarking on its rate-cutting cycle, there are some glimmers of optimism for a sector that has struggled under the weight of higher interest rates," TD Economics said in a report.

* US job openings rose to 8.04 million in August from 7.71 million the previous month, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The consensus was for a 7.67 million reading in a survey compiled by Bloomberg.

* November West Texas Intermediate crude oil closed up $1.66 to settle at $69.83 per barrel, while December Brent crude, the global benchmark, was last seen up $1.96 to $73.66 on rising geopolitical risks after Iran launched a missile strike on Israel to avenge the killing of Hassan Nasrallah, the head of Hamas, and other senior leaders of the militant group.

* Paychex ( PAYX ) was up 4.9%. The company logged higher-than-expected fiscal Q1 results and reiterated its top- and bottom-line guidance.

* Apple's ( AAPL ) suppliers may have to import parts from China or elsewhere after a fire caused extensive damage at Tata Group's iPhone component plant in India over the weekend, Reuters reported. Apple's ( AAPL ) shares were down 2.9%.