TRADING DAY-AI disruption, US-Iran nuclear talks, rate cut bets keep investors on their toes

By Stephen Culp

NEW YORK, Feb 17 (Reuters) - Wall Street stocks see-sawed to nominal gains on Tuesday as investors juggled ongoing concerns over spending on artificial intelligence and the potential economic disruptions AI may bring, with positive signals from Iran regarding the progress of nuclear talks with the United States.

Investors appeared to buy the technology dip, with tech and chip shares reversing earlier losses as the session progressed.

I will go into more detail on today's market moves below. If you have more time to read, here are a few articles I recommend to help you make sense of what happened in markets today.
I'd love to hear from you, so please reach out to me with comments at stephen.culp@thomsonreuters.com.
 
    Today's Key Market Moves 

          STOCKS: U.S. indexes closed little changed. Norwegian Cruise Line NCLH.N and Southwest Airlines LUV.N helped boost transports .DJT, while Apple AAPL.O and Broadcom AVGO.O provided some upside muscle for tech .SPLRCT

          SECTORS/SHARES: Real estate .SPLRCR, financials .SPSY, Dow transports, and airlines .SPCOMAIR outperformed, but energy .SPNY, consumer staples .SPLRCS and housing stocks .HGX were the clear laggards

          FX: The dollar strengthened on geopolitical tensions, while the euro notched its sixth straight session of losses against the dollar. The yen weakened for the second straight session after snapping a five-day winning streak.

          BONDS: U.S. Treasury yields were mixed amid Fed rate cut speculation

          COMMODITIES/METALS: Cooling geopolitical tensions eased oil supply concerns and safe-haven demand, sending crude and gold prices lower.

          
    

          
    

      Today's Key Reads
    

          Fed's Goolsbee: Several rate cuts possible this year if inflation gets back to 2%
        

          Dollar might be ready for a reprieve after a four-month decline
        

          Suffocating U.S. pressure could force Russian oil output cuts
        

          Canada's annual inflation cools in January on falling gasoline prices
        

          Quiet markets, loud diplomacy: All eyes on Iran
        
 



      Today's Talking Points
    
 

      Artificial intelligence and its potential impact on the labor market
    
Fed Reserve Governor Michael Barr and San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly spoke separately on the subject of AI and its potential impact on the labor market and the broader economy. 


      Warner Bros Discovery rejected Paramount Skydance's revised bid; remains receptive to final offer
    
Warner Bros Discovery WBD.O turned down Paramount Skydance's latest $30-per-share hostile bid, but gave the company seven days to deliver a "best and final" offer.    

          
    

          
    

          
    

      What could move markets tomorrow?
    
United Kingdom CPI (January)
United Kingdom PPI (January)
France CPI (January)
U.S. New Orders for Durable Goods (December)
U.S. Housing Starts/Building Permits (December)
U.S. Industrial Production/Capacity Utilization (January)
Japan Machinery Orders (December)
South Korea Trade Balance (January)
Australia Employment Report (January)
U.S. Federal Reserve Vice Chair Michelle Bowman participates in a discussion on "supervision and regulation"    

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