Wall St closes lower on vaccine delay, dampened stimulus hopes

Johnson & Johnson announced on Monday it was pausing clinical trials of a COVID-19 vaccine candidate due to an unexplained illness in a study participant. The delay weighed on the company's shares, even after its beat-and-raise earnings report. Its shares lost 2.3%. Late in the session, rival Eli Lilly & Co said it was also halting its coronavirus antibody trial because of safety concerns, sending its shares down 2.9%.

NEW YORK: Wall Street lost ground on Tuesday, with halted COVID-19 vaccine trials and an elusive U.S. stimulus agreement weighing on sentiment as third quarter earnings season got underway.

While all three major stock indexes closed in the red, a gain Microsoft Corp shares helped the mitigate the tech-heavy Nasdaq's loss.