NEW YORK, May 14 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks were little changed on Wednesday as investors took a breather following a strong rally earlier in the week that pushed the S&P 500 into positive territory for the year.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 89.37 points, or 0.21 percent, to 42,051.06. The S&P 500 added 6.03 points, or 0.10 percent, to 5,892.58, extending a two-day rally and moving further into positive territory for the year. The Nasdaq Composite Index increased 136.72 points, or 0.72 percent, to 19,146.81.

Eight of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in red, with health and materials leading the laggards by losing 2.31 percent and 0.96 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, communication services and technology led the gainers by going up 1.58 percent and 0.96 percent, respectively.

Technology shares led the market, with Nvidia climbing 4.16 percent after it announced plans to deliver 18,000 of its advanced artificial intelligence chips to Saudi Arabia. Fellow chipmaker AMD jumped more than 4 percent, buoyed by news of a 6 billion U.S. dollars share buyback.

So far this week, the S&P 500 has gained more than 4 percent, the Dow Jones Industrial Average is up over 1 percent, and the Nasdaq has surged more than 6 percent. The recent rally has lifted the S&P 500 more than 21 percent from its April 7 intraday low, when it had been down over 20 percent from its all-time high in February.

The boost in market sentiment follows progress in China-U.S. trade talks in Geneva. Earlier this week, the United States cut its tariffs on Chinese imports to 30 percent, while China reduced its duties on U.S. goods to 10 percent. These steps eased fears of a full-blown trade war, after the two countries had threatened to impose tariffs above 100 percent last month.

"While this progress has led to a likely peak in investor fear and policy uncertainty, there are still a lot of unknowns over where tariff rates will ultimately land," said Adam Turnquist, chief technical strategist at LPL Financial.

On Wednesday, American Eagle (AEO) joined a slew of retailers pulling their 2025 guidance due to macro uncertainty.

"However, for now, investors have embraced the de-escalatory backdrop, especially the tariff reprieve deal reached with China over the weekend," said Turnquist.

According to Deutsche Bank, U.S. equities are likely to continue outperforming in the near term, thanks to the easing trade tensions. However, Deutsche Bank strategist Maximilian Uleer noted in a Wednesday report that, despite the tariff relief, the long-term burden of trade policy may still weigh more heavily on U.S. companies than their European counterparts. ■