US stocks closed mixed on Tuesday, with the Dow notching third straight record close but the other indexes slipping after slower retail sales kicked off a flood of crucial economic data ahead of the closely watched monthly jobs report.

The blue chip-heavy Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) rose roughly 0.1%, while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) lost about 0.3%. The Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) fell 0.6% as Big Tech titans Nvidia (NVDA) and Alphabet (GOOG) lost ground.

December retail sales remained "virtually unchanged" from the month prior. The flatlining sales data signals a slowdown in spending through the end of the holiday season from November's month-on-month growth of 0.6%, and it fell well below economist expectations.

The weak number appeared to lead to an increase in bets on interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve. While most traders still expect the Fed to hold steady next month and April, those majorities are shrinking. Meanwhile, over 75% of traders now expect rates to be lower by June.

The consumer data lays the ground for Wednesday's all-important January jobs report, in high focus following last week's signs of softening in the labor market. The latest Consumer Price Index reading is then due on Friday to give a look at inflation pressures, as the Fed continues to balance both sides of its dual mandate

In the corporate world, wealth management stocks took a hit on Tuesday after an AI startup unveiled a tool that raised concerns about potential disruption in the industry, echoing recent fears seen in the software sector. Shares of Charles Schwab (SCHW), Raymond James Financial (RJF), and LPL Financial (LPLA) all sold off more than 6%.

Elsewhere, investors combed through the latest batch of quarterly earnings, Coca-Cola (KO) and CVS Health (CVS) among them. Ford (F) is a highlight on Tuesday's docket after the market close.

Gold (GC=F) and bitcoin (BTC-USD) are still on investors’ radar, as the assets try to stabilize after last week’s sharp pullback. After rallying above $5,000 to start the week, gold slipped back slightly early Tuesday, though strategists remain bullish on its prospects this year. But a risk-off mood weighed on bitcoin, which resumed its slide to trade near $69,000. The leading cryptocurrency has seen heavy volatility, driven by what one analyst called a "crisis of confidence."

Stocks mostly slipped on Tuesday as investors turned their focus to the monthly jobs report expected to be released on Wednesday morning.

The blue chip-heavy Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) inched up to post a third record close. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) slipped 0.3%, and the Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) also fell 0.5%.

Wealth-management stocks sold off on Tuesday amid fears of AI disruption sweeping the industry.

The sell-off came after Altruist, an AI startup, announced on Tuesday a new tool that allows financial advisers to create fully personalized tax strategies for clients using pay stubs, statements, and other documents.

Wealth-management stocks sold off on Tuesday amid fears of AI disruption sweeping the industry.

The sell-off was sparked by a new tool announced on Tuesday by the startup Altruist, which allows financial advisers to create fully personalized tax strategies for clients using pay stubs, statements, and other documents.

Shares of Charles Schwab (SCHW), Raymond James Financial (RJF), and LPL Financial (LPLA) all sold off after the unveiling. Stifel Financial also headed lower.

The sell-off is similar to what has happened with software stocks, which have been punished over concerns that customers will use AI and be less reliant on outside companies for data and workflows.

Yahoo Finance's Francisco Velasquez reports:

Investors obsessed with efficiency — a thinly veiled euphemism for layoffs — may have found an unlikely ally in Superhuman CEO Shishir Mehrotra.

\\"I don't view [AI] as a job taker. I view it as a job expander,\\" Mehrotra told Yahoo Finance. \\"In my mind, we're about to give everybody 100 new employees.\\" He added that the likely result is the workforce is taught to use management skills to oversee digital teams.

Read more here.

Yahoo Finance's Emma Ockerman reports:

The Labor Department will publish much-anticipated jobs data for January on Wednesday, as well as sweeping revisions to 2025 numbers that could show far fewer new positions were added to the US economy than previously thought.

Private data released last week indicated the labor market remained bruising in January for out-of-work Americans, with little in the way of new jobs. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg estimate a median gain of about 68,000 jobs in January’s report, though the projections varied widely: The highest saw 135,000 more jobs, while the lowest saw a loss of 10,000 roles. The unemployment rate was expected to remain steady at 4.4%.

Read more here.

Yahoo Finance's Jennifer Schonberger reports:

Cleveland Federal Reserve president Beth Hammack said Tuesday that she believes monetary policy is in a \\"good place\\" to maintain interest rates and that, based on her forecast, the central bank could be on hold \\"for quite some time.\\"

\\"I believe monetary policy is in a good place to stay on hold as we assess the incoming data and weigh if, and how, policy may need to adjust further,\\" Hammack said at the Ohio Bankers League Economic Summit in Columbus, Ohio.

\\"Based on my forecast, we could be on hold for quite some time,\\" she said.

Hammack said inflation is still too high and has largely moved sideways for more than two years. She sees a risk that inflation could persist near 3% this year, as it has for the past two years.

Read more here.

Vitol, the world's largest independent oil trader, pushed back its estimates for when oil demand will peak in a new report released Monday, forecasting a peak in the mid-2030s against previous predictions of a peak in the early 2030s.

The commodities trading house said demand could \\"at its height ... reach around 112 million [barrels per day], and is likely to remain close to this level with only minimal decline by the end of the forecast,\\" adding that demand in 2040 is likely to be around 5 million bpd higher than its current level.

Current global demand sits a bit above 100 million bpd.

\\"Population growth, rising incomes, and continued urbanisation are sustaining underlying demand for mobility, plastics, chemicals, and energy — and by extensions, oil,\\" the trading house, which trades roughly 7% of global oil every day, wrote in its new report.

\\"This dynamic is reinforced in several regions by a stronger industrial policy orientation, with a greater emphasis on domestic competitiveness and security of supply.\\"

Vitol noted in its report that a slower-than-expected adoption of electric vehicles in the US and Asian markets is one of the primary drivers of its pushed-back demand thesis, \\"only partly counterbalanced by faster adoption in emerging markets and a more constructive outlook for electric heavy commercial vehicles.\\"

The firm also sees demand for jet fuel and liquified petroleum gas (LPG) to rise as key drivers of underlying oil demand.

Predictions throughout the industry had coalesced around the view that a deep oversupply glut would push prices down throughout at least the first half of 2026. However, prices have instead strengthened as a mixture of geopolitics and stronger-than-expected demand have dominated this year's oil market.

Brent crude (BZ=F), the international pricing benchmark, is up 11% on the year, while US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude (CL=F) is up 10.4%. Talks between the US and Iran over the Iranian regime's nuclear enrichment program are currently top of mind for oil industry watchers, given Iran's control over the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial shipping chokepoint.

Yahoo Finance's David Hollerith reports:

Goldman Sachs (GS) CEO David Solomon on Tuesday called last week's sharp sell-off in software industry stocks \\"a little bit too broad,\\" joining Wall Street's chorus of voices urging patience as investor nerves frayed over the potential impacts of AI across the investing landscape.

\\"The narrative over the last week has been a little bit too broad,\\" Solomon said at a UBS financial services conference in Key Biscayne, Fla. \\"There'll be winners and losers, and, you know, plenty of companies will pivot and do just fine,\\" he added.

Solomon’s comments on Tuesday followed attempts by executives from the alternative investment industry to downplay these fears during earnings calls last week.

Read the full story here.

EV sales and the lasting effects of a major fire at an aluminum plant are expected capture investor attention when automaker giant Ford reports fourth-quarter earnings after the bell on Tuesday. The stock picked up roughly 07% in Tuesday morning trading ahead of the release.

Yahoo Finance's Pras Subramanian reports:

Big Three automaker Ford (F) is on deck to report fourth quarter results Tuesday after the bell, with particular focus on its electric vehicle business and the effects of an aluminum plant fire that impacted Ford’s franchise F-150 sales.

For the quarter, Ford is expected to report revenue of $42.40 billion, per Bloomberg consensus, with adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $0.19, on adjusted EBIT of $1.16 billion.

Last December, Ford reported a $19.5 billion charge due to a pivot in its EV business. The majority of the special items would be recognized in the fourth quarter ($12.5 billion) and balance ($7.0 billion) hitting in 2026 and 2027.

Inclusive of the $19.5 billion are cash charges of $5.5 billion related to vehicle cancellations and charges, with the majority paid in 2026 and the remainder in 2027.

The asset impairment portion of the write-down is $8 billion, which includes a write-down of EV assets, as well as $6 billion related to restructuring and taking on assets like the Kentucky battery plants from Ford’s battery partner SK On.

The charges come on the heels of softer-than-expected demand for larger EVs and the loss of the federal EV tax credit. Ford, GM (GM), and Stellantis (STLA) have now cumulatively posted $52.1 billion in losses due to their EV game plans backfiring.

Read more here.

Paramount Skydance (PSKY) isn't giving up in its attempt to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), as Netflix (NFLX) is in the hot seat, undergoing an investigation by the DOJ.

On Tuesday before market open, Paramount enhanced its all-cash, $30 per share offer to acquire all of Warner Bros. with a $0.25 per share \\"ticking fee,\\" or roughly $650 million cash value, that would be payable to Warner Bros.' shareholders every quarter the transaction is not closed beyond Dec. 31, 2026.

The move comes as its offer is set to expire on Feb. 20, after a previous extension of its $108 billion hostile takeover bid.

In a release, Paramount said this ticking fee is meant \\"to underscore confidence in the speed and certainty of its regulatory pathway.\\"

The company also said it would pay the $2.8 billion termination fee to end its deal with Netflix and \\"offers solutions to WBD's debt financing costs and obligations.\\"

\\"We are making meaningful enhancements — backing this offer with billions of dollars, providing shareholders with certainty in value, a clear regulatory path, and protection against market volatility,\\" Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison said.

Meanwhile, Netflix executives are pushing forward. The Department of Justice is holding a hearing to investigate whether Netflix's $83 billion deal to acquire Warner Bros. would create a monopoly.

Coca-Cola (KO) stock fell by about 2% after the company offered what CEO James Quincey called a \\"prudent\\" outlook for 2026 as the company aims to reverse pressure on international sales.

\\"We've taken what we think is a realistic, but prudent, approach relative to a number of international markets [where] we need to see improve through the course of 2026,\\" Quincey told Yahoo Finance.

In the fourth quarter, organic revenue grew 5% across the company's geographies, outpacing the 4.8% growth expected by Wall Street. For 2026, the company expects organic sales to grow 4%-5%, below the 5% growth expected by analysts, according to Bloomberg data. Coca-Cola's adjusted earnings are expected to grow in a range of 7%-8% this year after growing 9% in 2025.

Regions where the company is experiencing pressure include China, India, and Mexico, where a soft drink tax was recently implemented. Sales in its Asia Pacific region were flat in the fourth quarter.

In North America, the company said volumes grew 1% while prices were up 4% in the fourth quarter as consumers continued to turn to less-sugary options.

Read more here.

Shares in S&P Global (SPGI) began to dig out of a deep post-earnings slump on Tuesday, reversing a roughly 20% loss as executives spoke with analysts and investors on the company's fourth quarter earnings call.

The company's shares initially plummeted on Tuesday morning after S&P Global reported 2026 profit expectations below analyst estimates, forecasting adjusted per-share profit of $19.40 to $19.65, against estimates of $19.94.

S&P Global also reported adjusted earnings per share at $4.30, missing analyst estimates of $4.34 per share. Top-line revenue for the quarter came in at $3.916 billion, above estimates of $3.91 billion.

Despite the reversal of losses on Tuesday morning, shares in S&P Global remain down by more than 20% on the year. The company has been caught in the software sector sell-off that racked the market through the first week of February.

US stocks rose at the start of trading on Tuesday, setting the Dow (^DJI) on track to build on Monday's record close.

The blue chip-heavy Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) led gains, picking up 0.5% to put a fresh closing high within reach. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) and the Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) also ticked up, gaining roughly 0.1% each.

The push into the green came as investors digested December's slowdown in retail sales. The report is the first in this week's flood of crucial data, highlighted by the monthly jobs report to come on Wednesday.

In the corporate world, investors received fourth-quarter earnings from Coca-Cola (KO) and CVS Health (CVS) Tuesday morning, with Ford (F) yet to come after the market close. Nvidia (NVDA) chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor's (TSM) sales grew at their fastest rate in months in January, buoying hopes around the AI market.

Gold (GC=F) clung to $5,000 per troy ounce on Tuesday even as the broader metals complex pulled back. Meanwhile, bitcoin (BTC-USD) managed to climb back above $69,000.

Oil prices (BZ=F, CL=F) also picked up as investors digested what looked like positive moves toward diplomacy in talks between the US and Iran on Friday.

Retail spending remained virtually unchanged from the previous month in December 2025, according to data released on Tuesday, signaling a potential slowdown in consumer activity.

Adjusted advance monthly sales for retail and food services for December moved 0% from November, at $735 billion compared to November's $735.1 billion, the Census Bureau said Tuesday morning.

The month-on-month stall comes after November, when sales grew by 0.6%. December's number also falls below consensus expectations for month-on-month retail sales growth of 0.4%. Sales excluding motor vehicles and gasoline also remained flat, contrary to expectations of month-on-month growth of 0.4%.

The flat numbers suggest an unexpected slowdown in spending that coincides with December's holiday season, typically a strong time of year for consumer spending. Eight out of 13 spending categories measured by the Census Bureau saw drawdowns.

Here's a look at some stocks trending on Yahoo Finance after following a slew of earnings reports:

Spotify (SPOT) shares surged 10% after the Swedish streaming company forecast profit above estimates and reported solid fourth quarter earnings that beat estimates by about $1.96 per share. Subscribers also grew 10% to 290 million in the quarter despite a $1 price hike.

CVS (CVS) stock wavered before dropping more than 2% after the company reported a profit decline that still beat Wall Street analyst estimates. CVS maintained its full-year adjusted profit forecast.

BP (BP) announced the suspension of its $750 million stock buyback program after previous reductions, sending the stock 3% lower. The company is prioritizing repairing its balance sheet after activist investor Elliott Investment Management began pushing for changes and amid a CEO change.

Oscar Health (OSCR) stock popped 8% despite the health insurer reporting a wider loss and increased medical loss ratio of 95.4%. Investors cheered the company's full-year outlook, which sees profitability after 2025's \\"reset year.\\"

Read more live coverage of corporate earnings here. 

Selling resumed in bitcoin (BTC-USD) on Tuesday after a calm start to the week, pushing the cryptocurrency below $69,000. Ether (ETH-USD) also slid to $2,013 per token as bearish sentiment returned and the crypto market looked for a sense of direction.

The losses came after a volatile week that saw bitcoin face its worst daily drop since November 2022, followed by a sharp rebound.

Bernstein analyst Gautam Chhugani wrote in a note on Monday morning that the bear case for bitcoin remains weak, however.

\\"The current bitcoin price action is a mere crisis of confidence,\\" Chhugani wrote. \\"Nothing broke, no skeletons will show up.\\"

Read more here.

Gold (GC=F) is trading steady above $5,000 an ounce, holding onto a two-day gain after a historic sell-off,

While many traders are debating whether prices have found a bottom, banks are staying upbeat on gold's prospects. BNP Paribas strategist David Wilson said the precious metal may climb to $6,000 by the end of the year, as geopolitical risks persist and investors search for risk protection.

Bloomberg reports:

A surge in precious metals driven by speculative demand came to a swift halt at the end of January, when silver suffered its biggest daily drop on record and gold plunged the most since 2013. However, many of the factors that underpinned the multiyear rally — heightened geopolitical risks, elevated central-bank buying and lower interest rates — remain in play.

“The recent bout of volatility has called into question the value of gold as a hedge against geopolitical and market swings,” Mark Haefele, global wealth management chief investment officer at UBS Group AG, wrote in a note. “We believe such worries are overdone, and that the rally in gold will resume.”

Many banks and asset managers, including Deutsche Bank AG and Goldman Sachs Group Inc., have backed a recovery in bullion. Underscoring resilient official demand, the Chinese central bank extended its gold buying to a 15th month in January.

Read more here.

The Financial Times reports:

Donald Trump’s administration intends to spare companies including Amazon (AMZN), Google (GOOG) and Microsoft (MSFT) from forthcoming tariffs on chips as they race to build the data centers powering the AI boom.

The commerce department is planning to provide US hyperscalers with tariff carve-outs, which would be tied to investment commitments made by Taiwan-based chip group Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSM, 2330.TW), people familiar with the matter said.

The exemption scheme underscores President Trump’s determination to impose tariffs on chips and incentivise US domestic chipmaking, while offering some relief for the companies powering the US’s rapid AI expansion, which rely heavily on imported semiconductors.

Trump has used the threat of tariffs to push for more US manufacturing. But the administration has stopped short of applying broad tariffs on semiconductors from Taiwan, which would rock Big Tech’s AI supply chain.

Read more here.

On Semiconductor (ON) stock skidded in premarket trading on Tuesday, falling by 4%, after the company recorded lower profits in the fourth quarter than a year ago but said it's seeing \\"signs of stabilization\\" in its key markets.

The chipmaker reported earnings per share of $0.45 on revenue of $1.53 billion, missing earnings estimates of $0.59 per share and falling below earnings per share of $0.88 in the same period a year ago, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence. The company's fourth quarter revenue was in line with estimates.

The company saw annual sales declines across all of its business groups: Power Solutions, Analog & Mixed Signal, and Intelligent Sensing. Intelligent Sensing was the only segment that saw sales grow quarter over quarter, while Power Solutions and Analog & Mixed Signal sales fell 2% and 5%, respectively.

For the first quarter, On Semiconductor expects revenue in the range of $1.43 billion to $1.53 billion, which has a midpoint below the consensus estimate of $1.5 billion. Adjusted diluted earnings per share are expected to be between $0.56 and $0.66; Wall Street expects $0.61.

Bloomberg reports:

Companies from game console maker Nintendo Co. (NTDOY) to big PC brands and Apple Inc. (AAPL) suppliers are seeing shares slump on profitability concerns. Memory producers, meanwhile, are soaring to unprecedented heights. Money managers and analysts are now assessing which firms can best navigate the squeeze by locking in supplies, raising product prices or redesigning to use less memory.

A Bloomberg gauge of global consumer electronics makers is down 12% since the end of September while a basket of memory makers including Samsung Electronics Co. (005930.KS) has surged more than 160%. The question now is how much is priced in.

“What remains underappreciated is the risk around duration — current valuations largely factor in that the disruption will normalize within one to two quarters,” said Vivian Pai, a fund manager at Fidelity International. “We believe industry tightness is likely to persist,” possibly through the rest of the year, she added.

Memory chip shortages and pricing are being mentioned frequently by companies in earnings reports and conference calls. Investors are hearing the alarm bells.

Read more here.

AP Finance reports:

Asian shares were mostly higher Tuesday as Japan’s benchmark topped new highs after a historic election win for the nation’s first female prime minister.

Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 (^N225) jumped 2.6% to 57,821.58. The index recorded a 3.9% jump to a record Monday, a day after the landslide victory for Sanae Takaichi’s political party in a parliamentary election. Hopes are high Takaichi will push through reforms expected to boost the economy and stock market.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 (^AXJO) rose 0.3% to 8,893.60. South Korea's Kospi (^KS11) gained 0.6% to 5,327.80. Hong Kong's Hang Seng (^HSI) surged 1.0% to 27,300.00, while the Shanghai Composite (000888.SS) added 0.2% to 4,130.20.

Read more here.