Stock market today: Dow falls a second day while tech stocks shake off inflation

Investing.com -- Stocks lost their earlier upward momentum after August's inflation report came in mostly at expectations, stoking hopes the Federal Reserve is reaching the end of its interest rate increases.

At 16:01 ET (20:01 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 70 points or 0.2% while the S&P 500 ended higher by 0.1% and the NASDAQ Composite was up 0.3%.

The three major Wall Street indices were weighed down on Tuesday by sharp losses from Oracle (NYSE:ORCL). The computer software company notched its worst day in more than 20 years on the back of disappointing revenue guidance. For the Dow, Wednesday's fall was its second in a row.

U.S. CPI data hits ahead of Fed meeting 

The focus Wednesday was the U.S. consumer price index, which investors are using gauge the likely path of U.S. interest rates over the rest of the year.

The annual headline inflation in the world's largest economy rose 3.7%, slightly higher than the expected 3.6% during the month of August, as energy prices soared, but the core reading, which strips out volatile items like food and fuel, rose 4.3%, as expected. 

Thursday will bring readings on producer prices and retail sales.

Recent remarks from Fed officials suggest another pause is the most likely outcome of next week's rate-setting meeting, but uncertainty still remains over what they may choose to do later on in 2023.

Apple to remain in spotlight after iPhone reveal

In the corporate sector, Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) and Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) are likely to benefit from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s recommendation that all Americans ages six months and older receive updated Covid vaccines from the two drugmakers. Moderna shares were up 3.1%, while Pfizer was down 0.2%.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) will also remain in focus after the tech giant revealed four new iPhone models at its annual hardware refresher on Tuesday, but refrained from launching major updates to the flagship device's design or software. Shares closed flat.

Investors were also awaiting the pricing of Arm Holdings' initial public offering, which could be the biggest of the year to date. The SoftBank-owned chip designer is aiming to start trading in New York on Thursday.

Crude gains ahead of EIA inventory report

Oil prices edged higher Wednesday, near their highest levels since November 2022, boosted by ongoing supply concerns as well as a bullish demand outlook from the OPEC monthly report.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, in a report released on Tuesday, said that oil markets will tighten further this year amid robust demand and lower production.

Additionally, the Energy Information Administration said global oil inventories were expected to fall by almost a half million barrels per day in the second half of 2023.

This overshadowed data from the American Petroleum Institute showing that U.S. crude inventories rose 1.2 million barrels last week.