US stocks diverged Tuesday after another record-setting day, as Wall Street waited for the first speech from Chair Jerome Powell since the Federal Reserve started cutting interest rates again.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) jumped around 0.7%. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) hovered around the flatline, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) lost 0.3%.

Stocks jumped on Monday to clinch a third straight day of record-high closes, lifted by optimism that the AI trade and further Fed policy easing will continue to fuel the rally. The Nasdaq (^IXIC) led the gains as Nvidia stock surged (NVDA) after the chipmaker said it will invest at least $100 billion in OpenAI (OPAI.PVT).

On the Fed-watching side, Powell is scheduled to deliver a speech on monetary policy later Tuesday, in high focus after policymakers last week lowered rates for the first time in 2025.

His comments will set the stage for the release on Friday of the Fed's preferred inflation gauge, the Personal Consumption Expenditures index. Wall Street will look for signs that already sticky inflation isn't heating up, which could dent high expectations for two more rate reductions this year. Other data released Tuesday showed that US business activity cooled this month, while a measure of prices paid for materials jumped, indicating price pressures are persisting.

Meanwhile, gold (GC=F) also climbed to another fresh record high as optimism for Fed rate cuts grows.

On the tech side, the spotlight is on Micron Technology's (MU) quarterly earnings due after the bell. The memory chipmaker's results will be watched for updates on AI-driven demand and revenue guidance, with analysts expecting an almost 40% jump in sales.

Nvidia (NVDA) shares nudged 2% lower in early trading on Tuesday after climbing roughly 4% to a record close of $183.61 on Monday following the chipmaker's announcement of a $100 billion investment in OpenAI.

The partnership will allow OpenAI to deploy \\"at least 10 gigawatts\\" of compute capacity from the Nvidia''s AI systems — starting with its upcoming Vera Rubin platform in the second half of 2026 — to train and run the ChatGPT maker's next generation of artificial intelligence models. Thaequates to as many as 5 million of Nvidia's GPUs, Wall Street analysts estimated.

CEO Jensen Huang called it \\"the biggest AI infrastructure project in history.\\" Bank of America (BAC) analyst Vivek Arya said the deal could generate as much as $500 billion in revenue for the AI chipmaker.

Still, Arya noted, \\"The optics of such large investment in a customer will raise questions until NVDA clarifies the appropriate accounting treatment.\\" DA Davidson analyst Gil Luria also raised questions about OpenAI \\"making commitments well beyond its means.\\"

Read more in my story on the deal here.

US stocks held steady on Tuesday at the open.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) nudged up nearly 0.3%. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) both hovered near the flat line.

The largely muted start to Tuesday comes after the three major stock indexes hit record highs for a third consecutive trading session Monday as AI optimism was boosted by Nvidia's deal with OpenAI.

Shares of the online real estate company Better Home & Finance (BETR) popped more than 27% in premarket trading on Tuesday, adding to Monday's 46% rally after activist investor Eric Jackson called the company \\"the Shopify of mortgages.\\"

Yahoo Finance's Jake Conley reports:

Better Home, which opened for trading at $33.50 on Monday, traded as high as $73 in the wake of Jackson's announcement before giving up some of those gains and settling around $50 at Monday's close. Shares sat around $62 Tuesday morning.

Jackson said in the post that his hedge fund, EMJ Capital, has a long position in the stock.

\\"Better [Home] ($BETR) is the Shopify of mortgages,\\" Jackson wrote. \\"It's rebuilding a $15T industry from scratch with AI ... I believe BETR is a potential 350-bagger in 2 years.\\"

\\"They laugh at BETR now at $34 like they laughed at [Carvana] at $3.50 and OPEN at 51¢. But this is no meme,\\" he added.

Read more here.

Plug Power (PLUG) stock continued to mount significant gains on Tuesday, climbing 11% in premarket trading.

Over the past five days, shares have rallied 68%, including a 21% gain on Monday, as investors see a use case for the company's green hydrogen fuel in powering data centers and artificial intelligence. The company is also benefiting from a broader lift in clean energy stocks after the Federal Reserve cut interest rates last week.

On Monday, Plug also submitted a prospectus supplement to the SEC related to the potential resale of some or all of its 185.4 million shares of common stock. The warrants have an exercise price of $2.00 per share and expire on March 20, 2028.

Kenvue (KVUE) stock rebounded on Tuesday morning after President Trump linked the use of its pain-relieving drug Tylenol to autism but didn't offer new scientific evidence to support that claim.

Shares rose 4.8% in premarket trading after dropping over 7% on Monday.

In a press conference on Monday, Trump connected incidences of autism with women taking Tylenol while pregnant, which drew criticism from doctors and scientists who say that studies have not found a causal relationship between the two.

\\"Overall, we see limited judicial risk following today's announcement, but there could be some impact on Tylenol consumption due to negative headlines,\\" Citi analysts wrote in a note following the press conference.

Kenvue stock has been under pressure since reports surfaced that the Trump administration would release a report on Tylenol usage and autism. Tylenol makes up about 15% of Kenvue's US sales.

Read more here.

The S&P 500's (^GSPC) has made impressive returns in a year of economic tumult and historical parallels that hint at overextension, notes Yahoo Finance's Hamza Shaban in today's Morning Brief.

He reports:

That's not to say that we're on the verge of an epic sell-off. The math is more suggestive than prophetic. But it does prompt people interested in the stock market to consider what it would take to keep the party going.

\\"The S&P 500 is not just historically expensive on 2026 earnings but also based on an optimistic view of 2027 results,\\" [DataTrek co-founder Nicholas] Colas wrote in a note to clients Sunday.

For the S&P to maintain its estimated earnings multiple, the index would need to grow its earnings 13.4% next year and another 15% in 2027.

\\"Investor confidence must remain well above average over the next two years for the S&P to match its long-run rate of return,\\" he wrote.

Corporate profit margins holding up exceptionally well is one way to get there. ... But there's a delicate balancing act at play.

Read more here.

An order of 500 Boeing (BA) aircraft for China, which has been years in the making, is in the final stages of negotiations and is seen as the potential centerpiece of a US-China trade deal.

US Ambassador to China David Perdue did not offer any details on the size of the order but said, \\"This is a huge order.\\"

Shares of Boeing moved up over 2% in premarket trading on the sign that President Trump's plane diplomacy could deliver another deal.

Bloomberg News reports:

\\"It’s very important to the president. Very important for Boeing. I think it’s very important to China,” Perdue said Tuesday.

Boeing has been working toward finalizing a deal with China to sell as many as 500 aircraft, in a transaction that would end a sales drought that stretches back to US President Donald Trump’s last visit in 2017, Bloomberg News reported last month.

The landmark order, which has been years in the making, would be the centerpiece of a trade agreement between the two nations but has been contingent on an easing in tensions.

Read more here.

Economic data: Philadelphia Fed non-manufacturing index (September); S&P Global US manufacturing PMI (September preliminary reading); S&P Global US services PMI (September preliminary reading); S&P Global US composite PMI (September preliminary reading)

Earnings calendar: Micron Technology (MU), AutoZone (AZO), THOR Industries (THO)

Here are some of the biggest stories you may have missed overnight and early this morning:

It's not just 2025 optimism lifting the stock market

US, China close to 'huge' Boeing order

China buys Argentina soybeans, leaving US farmers sidelined

Kenvue stock bounces as Trump's Tylenol claims draw pushback

Nvidia's $100 billion OpenAI play raises big antitrust issues

Crypto traders bet on more volatility after $1.5 billion wipeout

Some PepsiCo investors wary of Elliott plan to spin out bottling

China floods the world with cheap exports after tariffs

An $800 billion revenue shortfall looms over AI

Here's a look at some of the top stocks trending in premarket trading:

Kenvue Inc (KVUE) stock rebounded and rose 5% in premarket trading on Tuesday after President Trump linked its popular pain medication Tylenol to autism risk during pregnancy.

Boeing (BA) stock rose 2% in premarket trading following news that the US and China were close to finalizing a deal for 500 aircrafts that some say could be the \\"centerpiece of a trade agreement.\\"

Micron Technology, Inc. (MU) stock rose 1% before the bell on Tuesday. The company will report its fourth-quarter earnings on Tuesday afternoon and Wall Street analysts are expecting continued strength and growing demand.

Gold (GC=F) hit a new record high as traders were unfazed by comments from Fed officials about forthcoming monetary policy.

Bloomberg reports:

Bullion edged up to hit $3,749.27 on ounce in Asia on Tuesday, following gains in the previous two sessions which included record highs. Investors have piled into exchange-traded funds — with holdings expanding at the fastest pace in more than three years on Friday — following a brief dip in prices last week as Fed Chair Jerome Powell curbed expectations for rapid easing, after the central bank reduced rates on Wednesday. Lower rates benefit typically benefit non-interest bearing precious metals.

“After pulling back the day after the Fed’s 25 basis-point rate cut — potentially on some perceived caution in Powell’s FOMC comments — new upward momentum has taken root with ETF inflows still the driving force,” BMO Capital Markets analysts including Helen Amos and George Heppel said in a note late Monday. “With a rate-cutting cycle firmly on the table we think risk-reward remains positive for prices into” the fourth quarter.

Powell is due to give a highly anticipated speech on the economic outlook later on Tuesday, after the quarterly rate forecasts that accompanied last week’s rate decision — known as the dot plot — showed a wide dispersion of views. Meanwhile, several Fed officials on Monday reiterated the need for taking a cautious approach to rate decisions moving forward, including St. Louis Fed President Alberto Musalem who said that he sees limited room for more reductions amid elevated price pressures.

Read more here.