**U.S. Stock Market Exhibits Mixed Performance Amidst Nasdaq's Record High**
The major U.S. stock indexes displayed divergent movement early Tuesday and continued their mixed performance into the afternoon.
The Nasdaq, heavily weighted with technology stocks, soared to a new intraday high, surpassing 17,000 for the first time. Conversely, the Dow Jones Industrial Average continued its downward slide from the previous week.
As of the latest trading figures, the Nasdaq moderated from its peak but remains 94.59 points higher—up 0.6 percent at 17,015.38. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 inched up by 1.16 points, or less than 0.1 percent, to 5,305.88.
The Dow hit a new session low, currently down 227.46 points or 0.6 percent, bringing it to 38,842.13.
Driving the Nasdaq's rise was a significant surge in Nvidia (NVDA) shares, climbing 7.1 percent to reach a new intraday high. This follows Nvidia's better-than-expected fiscal first-quarter results, positive guidance, a ten-for-one stock split announcement, and a 150 percent increase in its quarterly cash dividend to $0.10 per share.
The Dow's decline was partly due to a sharp drop in Merck (MRK) shares, which fell by 2.6 percent.
Market activity remained relatively subdued as investors anticipated the release of key inflation data later this week. On Friday, the Commerce Department will report on personal income and spending for April, including inflation metrics closely watched by the Federal Reserve.
This inflation data could influence interest rate forecasts ahead of the Fed's next monetary policy meeting on June 11-12. Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari commented in a CNBC interview that he needs to see "many more months of positive inflation data" before considering a rate cut. Although he lacks a vote on this year's Federal Open Market Committee, Kashkari did not rule out raising rates if inflation persists.
In economic news, the Conference Board reported a surprising increase in consumer confidence for May. The consumer confidence index rose to 102.0 from an upwardly revised 97.5 in April, defying economists’ expectations of a decrease to 95.3.
**Sector Analysis**
Nvidia's strong performance lifted semiconductor stocks, propelling the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index up 2.1 percent to a new record high.
Computer hardware stocks showed considerable weakness, evident in the 1.7 percent drop in the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index.
Outside the tech sector, oil services and gold stocks displayed significant strength, bolstered by rising prices in crude oil and gold. Meanwhile, healthcare and pharmaceutical stocks faced pressure, pushing the Dow Jones U.S. Health Care Index and the NYSE Arca Pharmaceutical Index down by 1.3 percent each.
**International and Bond Markets**
In overseas markets, Asia-Pacific stocks saw modest declines on Tuesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index edged down by 0.1 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index decreased by 0.5 percent.
European markets also trended downward. Germany's DAX Index fell by 0.5 percent, with the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index and France's CAC 40 Index declining by 0.8 percent and 0.9 percent, respectively.
In the bond market, U.S. Treasuries moved more decisively into negative territory. The yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves inversely to its price, rose by 5.5 basis points to 4.528 percent.
