US stock indexes traded slightly lower on Tuesday as investors balanced shifting energy prices against the risk of another Federal Reserve rate hike ahead of the next CPI inflation reading. The S&P 500, Dow, and Nasdaq 100 all stayed just below flatline. Sentiment was shaped in part by signs from Pakistani and Qatari authorities that a US-Iran deal could revive oil trade through the Persian Gulf, helping curb an earlier rebound in wholesale fuel prices that had followed President Trump tightening his rhetoric on Tehran. Bond yields eased, but rate- and credit-sensitive hyperscalers still came under pressure. Oracle, Amazon, and SpaceX fell more than 2%, while Intel dropped 1.5% after extending Monday's 4% decline and increasing its planned stock sale by $5 billion to $20 billion. Nvidia bucked the trend with a 1% gain after privately raising $500 billion with banks to expand AI infrastructure, a move that increased leverage exposure in the sector. Markets are now focused on Wednesday's CPI and on recent signals from multiple FOMC members that a hike could come next month, while SCMI and CoreWeave are due to report results after the bell.