US stocks close lower ahead of Fed decision

US stocks finished lower on Tuesday as investors weighed a mix of corporate earnings reports and fresh economic data one day before the Federal Reserve's monetary decision.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 204.57 points, or 0.46 percent, to close at 44,632.99. The S&P 500 fell 18.91 points, or 0.30 percent, to 6,370.86, while the Nasdaq Composite dropped 80.29 points, or 0.38 percent, to 21,098.29.

Seven of the 11 major S&P 500 sectors ended the day in negative territory, with industrials and consumer discretionary stocks leading the declines. Real estate and utilities led the gainers by going up 1.70 percent and 1.17 percent, respectively.

On the economic front, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that job openings held steady at 7.4 million in June, while hiring figures also showed little change.

Earnings played a major role in Tuesday's market moves. Boeing beat expectations with its quarterly results, while lackluster reports from Spotify, Merck, and UnitedHealth dampened sentiment. Shares of UPS plunged 10.57 percent after the company missed earnings estimates and declined to issue forward guidance. On the upside, Corning jumped 11.86 percent, leading gainers in the S&P 500 after strong results.

In the tech sector, most mega-cap stocks declined. Tesla and Apple each fell more than one percent, while Nvidia and Amazon also traded lower. Alphabet and Broadcom bucked the trend, both rising more than one percent. Investors are looking ahead to earnings from Microsoft and Meta, due after Wednesday's closing bell, with Apple and Amazon set to report Thursday.

The Federal Reserve began its two-day policy meeting on Tuesday, with markets broadly expecting interest rates to remain unchanged at a range of 4.25 percent to 4.5 percent.