Equities edged down in quiet trading Tuesday as the waiting game continued before US consumer price figures due Wednesday. The Dow industrials eased 0.2 percent, the S&P 500 lost 0.5 percent, and the Nasdaq was down 0.6 percent. US Treasury yields and oil prices rose while the dollar declined.

Uncertainty over debt ceiling talks weighed on risk appetite as investors hoped for news from an initial meeting Tuesday between President Biden and congressional leaders. New York Fed President John Williams sounded a bit hawkish during an appearance at the Economic Club of New York. Williams repeated that rate cuts are not on the table this year and that inflation remains sticky. He did allow that stingier credit would weigh on economic activity after recent bank failures.

In company news, earnings warnings from Paypal and Skyworks, an Apple supplier, weighed on the Nasdaq. On the positive side, Palantir and Shoals Technologies rallied after better than expected quarterly results.

Among sectors, best performers included industrials and energy while lagging were materials, financials, consumer discretionary, information technology, and real estate.

Market Reflections track market reaction to the trading day's major events. Economic data, policymaker speeches, and company news are featured in this report as well as key indexes and financial instruments.

Understanding why markets respond as they do is fundamental for an investor. Market Reflections help explain how the day's events, news, and data impact the outlook for the economy and for market prices.