The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq were muted on Wednesday in choppy trading, as investors took a from the AI-led market rally, while remaining cautious on progress in Middle East talks. Banking stocks were down after a slide of almost 2.9 percent for JPMorgan Chase after CEO Jamie Dimon warned that expenses this year could be $1 billion higher than estimated. The White House denied reports from Iran's state TV that Tehran would restore Strait of Hormuz shipping within a month in exchange for a U.S. military pullback and lifting of a naval blockade. Still, indexes traded near record highs. The Dow Jones nudged higher, lifted by a rotation into healthcare and consumer stocks. However, a pullback in chip stocks weighed on the tech-heavy Nasdaq. At 2:12 p.m. the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 154.75 points, or 0.31 percent, to 50,616.43, the S&P 500 lost 4.13 points, or 0.05 percent, to 7,515.11 and the Nasdaq Composite lost 13.31 points, or 0.05 percent, to 26,642.87. "After such a large run-up in the markets, it's not surprising to me that there is a little bit of a ," said Sean Clar
Seoul shares open at fresh high on tech rally amid renewed tension in Middle East