NEW YORK (AP) — Slumping AI stocks and another climb in oil prices because of the Iran war are helping to halt Wall Street’s record-setting rally on Tuesday.

The S&P 500 slipped 0.5% from its latest all-time high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, which has less of an emphasis on technology stocks, held up better and was up 116 points, or 0.2%, as of 9:35 a.m. Eastern time, while the Nasdaq composite fell 1% from its own record.

Stocks enmeshed in the artificial-intelligence industry led the way lower. Nvidia, whose chips are powering much of the AI revolution, sank 2.8% and was the heaviest weight on the S&P 500. Oracle fell 4.9%, and CoreWeave dropped 6.3%.

The weakness came after a report in The Wall Street Journal said some leaders at OpenAI are concerned about whether it can support its massive spending on data centers after missing targets for new users and revenue.

If the maker of ChatGPT pulls back on its investments, it could bolster criticism that the entire AI industry is in a bubble of over-the-top spending that may not produce the profits and productivity that would make it all worth it.

The drops come just a day before several of the biggest spenders on AI are scheduled to report their latest profits for the start of 2026. They could offer more clues on whether all the investment in AI is producing the kind of returns that shareholders care about. Alphabet, Amazon, Meta Platforms and Microsoft are all reporting their latest quarterly results on Wednesday.

Also weighing on the stock market was another rise of more than 2.5% for oil prices on continued uncertainty about what will happen with the Iran war.

The price for a barrel of Brent crude oil to be delivered in June climbed 2.9% to $111.31. Brent to be delivered in July, which is where traders are focusing more in the oil market, rose 2.8% to $104.54.

After sitting around $70 in late February, Brent prices are moving closer to their peak of $119 reached when worries about the war have been at their heights.

The focus is centered on the Strait of Hormuz, which is closed to traffic and keeping oil tankers stuck in the Persian Gulf instead of heading to customers worldwide. The Trump administration seemed unlikely Tuesday to accept Iran’s offer to end the war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz if the U.S. lifts its blockade on the country.

Source: WPLG