U.S. stocks rise as oil eases and investors await Fed decision

U.S. equity markets edged higher on Tuesday, with the S&P 500 up 0.16% to 7,689.22 and the Nasdaq Composite gaining 0.38% to 26,267.46, as Brent crude slipped for a second session and risk appetite improved ahead of the Federal Reserve's policy decision later this week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.14% to 52,287.66, pressured by a 3.4% drop in Sherwin-Williams shares after the paintmaker missed quarterly profit expectations.

Six of the eleven S&P 500 sectors posted gains, led by technology, while energy lagged. Megacap and growth stocks showed mixed performance; Tesla shares rose nearly 3% after a prior 5% jump, and chip-related stocks advanced 1.8% for a third consecutive day. Meta slipped 1.1% following the announcement of a $97.5 billion equity raise to fund its AI expansion, which attracted interest from Nvidia, AMD and Broadcom.

Investors are focusing on upcoming earnings from major AI-driven companies such as Alphabet, Microsoft and Amazon to gauge whether heavy AI spending is translating into revenue growth. > "If we see positive surprises and (earnings) raises on any of these AI stocks that are reporting from now until the Anthropic IPO, I think it's a very positive environment for the companies," said Peter Andersen, founder of Andersen Capital Management.

Corporate news included Boeing easing 1.8% after reporting a larger-than-expected third-quarter loss, while Royal Caribbean rose 6.5% after raising its full-year profit outlook. General Motors gained 5% after announcing a move of its stock listing to the Nasdaq. Xylem fell 8.8% after cutting its full-year forecasts.

The market breadth remained positive, with advancing issues outnumbering decliners by 1.16-to-1 on the NYSE and 1.24-to-1 on the Nasdaq. The S&P 500 recorded four new 52-week highs, and the Nasdaq posted 26 new highs alongside 127 new lows. Investors also look ahead to the November 3 midterm elections, which will determine control of the U.S. Congress.