Wall Street closed slightly lower in mixed trade on the 26th local time, ahead of the earnings report from artificial intelligence (AI) bellwether Nvidia.

On this day, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 113.52 points, or 0.21%, to finish at 53,463.88.

The S&P 500 declined 1.58 points, or 0.02%, to 7,675.70, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite dropped 21.10 points, or 0.08%, to 26,130.20.

Investors adopted a wait-and-see stance during the session, keeping a close eye on Nvidia's earnings scheduled for release.

With concerns growing over high valuations for recent AI-related stocks, Nvidia's earnings and outlook served as a testbed to gauge whether the AI investment frenzy could be sustained.

In its earnings report released after the market close, Nvidia announced that revenue for the second quarter of its fiscal year (May to July) reached $96.22 billion, breaking the record for quarterly sales growth for the 13th consecutive quarter.

This figure exceeded the market consensus of $92.17 billion compiled by market research firm London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) by more than $4 billion.

Ulrike Hoffmann-Burcardy, chief investment officer for the Americas and head of global equities at UBS, said, "Nvidia's earnings release could trigger additional market volatility," adding, "Investors are looking forward to future guidance that demonstrates continued demand for AI chips."

The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index rose 0.20%.

Among individual stocks, Meta gained 1.07% on news that it has agreed to pay approximately $16.7 billion, or about 23.1 trillion won, and strengthen youth protection measures to settle lawsuits brought by U.S. state governments regarding youth social media addiction.

Inflation data released on this day came in slightly higher than market expectations.

According to the U.S. Department of Commerce, the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index for July rose 3.7% from the same month last year, slightly topping the market forecast of 3.6%.

Compared to the previous month, it increased 0.2%.

The core PCE price index for July, which excludes volatile food and energy items, increased 3.3% year-over-year and 0.2% month-over-month, matching expert projections.

As higher-than-expected inflation data emerged, uncertainty surrounding the Federal Reserve's future monetary policy path persisted.

Markets are keeping a close watch on Federal Reserve Chair Kevin's speech at Jackson Hole scheduled for the 28th.

U.S. Treasury yields also ticked up.

Near the market close, the yield on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note rose 2.6 bps to 4.663%, and the 30-year bond yield increased 1.1 bps to 5.185%.

Meanwhile, international oil prices fell for the third consecutive session as negotiations between Iran and Oman over the Strait of Hormuz showed progress, acting as a partial relief factor for the stock market.

On the London ICE Futures Exchange, October delivery Brent crude dropped $0.74, or 0.84%, to settle at $87.84 per barrel.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, October delivery West Texas Intermediate (WTI) fell $0.13, or 0.16%, to finish at $82.23 per barrel.