US stocks open mostly lower as rally shows fatigue

Wall Street stocks were mostly down early Tuesday, giving back some of the recent gains in a market that has appeared resilient despite surging US coronavirus cases.

About 15 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.7% at 26 103.78.

The broad-based S&P 500 shed 0.3% to 3 171.12, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index added 0.2% at 10 451.18.

Major US indices gained more than 1.5% on Monday, with the Nasdaq finishing at a fresh record, betting that continued stimulus from Washington and the trend of the reopening economy would more than offset rising Covid-19 counts in Texas, Florida and other US states.

But analysts said the early pullback Tuesday suggested the rally was losing steam.

Investors are beginning to focus on the upcoming second-quarter earnings period, which begins in earnest next week.

Companies in the S&P 500 are projected to suffer an average 43.8% drop in profits during a period devastated by coronavirus shutdowns, according to Factset.