Sawt Falasteen - US stocks retreat from records as tech giants fall

The pullback followed comments from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell warning that cutting interest rates "too aggressively" could stoke inflation, while the central bank boss also emphasized the need to try to prevent the labor market from softening "unnecessarily."

All three major US indices have finished at records the last three days.

"Today's pullback after fresh record highs could reflect market participants giving credence to valuation concerns amid a historic run, particularly in the mega-cap space, though investors have repeatedly shown a willingness to buy dips throughout this rally," said Briefing.com.

The tech-rich Nasdaq led US indices lower, dropping one percent.

Nvidia, which rallied on Monday after announcing a $100 billion investment in OpenAI to build infrastructure for next-generation artificial intelligence, retreated on Tuesday, losing 2.8 percent.

While "leading tech companies are investing hundreds of billions in generative AI... some investors continue to question if this is money well spent," said David Morrison, senior market analyst at Trade Nation.

Earlier, London ended the day flat and Paris and Frankfurt added barely half of one percent as investors digested purchasing managers' index (PMI) data -- a closely watched gauge of economic health.

The index showed eurozone business activity hit a 16-month high in September, partly driven by solid growth in Germany, while France weighed on performance.

Britain's reading came in below expectations, suggesting the economy is losing momentum, analysts noted, as inflation fears linger.

With trade subdued by a holiday in Japan and an approaching typhoon in Hong Kong, Asian markets mostly drifted as Hong Kong and Shanghai both closed lower.

Taipei jumped more than one percent, with chip titan TSMC soaring over three percent as it tracked US counterpart Nvidia, which announced a $100-billion investment in OpenAI for next-generation artificial intelligence.

Oil prices rose after President Donald Trump called on Europe to completely halt oil imports from the country over the Ukraine war. The US president also threatened sanctions on Russia in a speech that tilted more heavily in support of Ukraine than earlier Trump stances.

- Key figures at around 2050 GMT -

New York - Dow: DOWN 0.2 percent at 46,292.78 (close)

New York - S&P 500: DOWN 0.6 percent at 6,656.92 (close)

New York - Nasdaq Composite: DOWN 1.0 percent at 22,573.47 (close)

London - FTSE 100: FLAT at 9,223.32 (close)

Paris - CAC 40: UP 0.5 percent at 7,872.02 (close)

Frankfurt - DAX: UP 0.4 percent at 23,611.33 (close)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.7 percent at 26,159.12 (close)

Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.2 percent at 3,821.83 (close)

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: Closed for a holiday

Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1816 from $1.1803 on Monday

Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3524 from $1.3514

Dollar/yen: DOWN at 147.66 yen from 147.72 yen

Euro/pound: UP at 87.37 pence from 87.34 pence

West Texas Intermediate: UP 1.8 percent at $63.41 per barrel

Brent North Sea Crude: UP 1.6 percent at $67.63 per barrel

Q.Jaber--SF-PST