A majority of S&P 500 .SPX sectors are higher, with materials .SPLRCM, up more than 1%, the top gainer. Healthcare .SPXHC, down more than 1%, is the biggest loser.
Under the surface, gold/silver miners .XAU, chip stocks .SOX and big banks .SPXBK are among the outperformers.
Software stocks .SPLRCIS are tumbling after IBM's IBM.N preliminary estimates reignited AI disruption fears.
Here is a snapshot of where markets stood around 9:55 a.m. ET.
The main U.S. indexes are modestly green early on Tuesday after softer-than-expected inflation data fueled bets that the Federal Reserve could take a less hawkish stance on interest rates, while investors assessed second-quarter results from major U.S. banks.
Meanwhile, in testimony prepared for delivery on Tuesday at the first of two congressional hearings this week, Fed Chair Kevin Warsh reiterated that his main thrust right now is to bring inflation back to the Fed's 2% target, a goal welcome among those he called his "superb colleagues" at the central bank but that may require him to disappoint President Trump's repeated hope for lower interest rates.
