Markets Right Now: Technology, banks pull US stocks lower

The latest on developments in financial markets (All times local):

4 p.m.

Losses for technology companies and banks pulled the stock market slightly below the latest all-time highs it set a day earlier.

Autodesk fell 1.9 percent Tuesday and video game maker Activision Blizzard gave up 1.7 percent. Citigroup fell 1.3 percent.

The market started higher but drifted gradually lower as the day went on.

Investors were keeping a close eye on Washington, where the Republican-sponsored tax bill passed in the House of Representatives. The bill would lower corporate tax rates.

The Standard & Poor's 500 fell 8 points, or 0.3 percent, to 2,681.

The Dow Jones industrials fell 37 points, or 0.2 percent, to 24,754. The Nasdaq slipped 30 points, or 0.4 percent, 6,963.

Bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 2.45 percent.

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11:45 a.m.

Stocks are edging lower in midday trading as investors wait for Congress to start voting on the Republican tax bill.

Technology companies, which have done far better than the rest of the market all year, fell the most Tuesday. Microsoft gave up 1.2 percent.

Energy companies rose along with the price of crude oil. Schlumberger gained 2 percent.

Darden Restaurants, the parent company of Olive Garden, rose 5.3 percent after reporting earnings that beat analysts' estimates.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 5 points, or 0.2 percent, to 2,684.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 42 points, or 0.2 percent, to 24,750. The Nasdaq composite slipped 30 points, or 0.4 percent, 6,964.

Bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 2.45 percent.

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9:35 a.m.

Stocks are opening slightly higher on Wall Street as gains for banks outweigh losses in technology companies.

Investors were keeping a close eye on Washington Tuesday, where the Republican tax bill was moving closer to a vote. The bill would cut corporate tax rates.

Darden Restaurants, the parent company of Olive Garden, rose 2.2 percent after reporting earnings that beat analysts' estimates.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 2 points, or 0.1 percent, to 2,692.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 29 points, or 0.1 percent, to 24,824. The Nasdaq composite slipped a fraction of a point to 6,993.

Bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 2.43 percent.