US stocks gain as drop in commodity prices help ease inflation concerns

• US stocks gained on Tuesday as inflation concerns eased due to falling commodity prices.
• The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 led the rally higher for the second day in a row, jumping half a percent.
• WTI Crude Oil fell about 2% from its recent high of $70 per barrel, while copper prices are down about 8% from its recent high.
• Sign up here for our daily newsletter, 10 Things Before the Opening Bell.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 led the stock market higher on Tuesday, extending its gains from Monday as worries about rising inflation eased.

That easing in inflation fears has been sparked by a drop in commodity prices, like oil, copper, and lumber. Those essential building blocks for the US economy are down about 2%, 8%, and 30% from their recent highs.

Investors will have a better handle on the current pace of inflation on Thursday, when CPI data is officially released for the month of May. In April, CPI jumped 4.2%, marking the fastest rise in inflation since 2008.

Here's where US indexes stood shortly after the 9:30 a.m. ET open on Tuesday:

• S&P 500: 4,230.68, up 0.1%
• Dow Jones industrial average: 34,579.33, down 0.15% (50.91 points)
• Nasdaq composite: 13,968.52, up 0.63%

Regulation concerns in the cryptocurrency space helped spark a wide sell-off, with $200 billion in market value being wiped out in a single day.

The FDA approval of Biogen's drug for Alzheimer's helped drive a $60 million gain for Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway, which owns a stake in the biotech company.

Shares of Clover Health, a recent SPAC brought public by Chamath Palihapitiya, surged as much as 41% in Tuesday trades as the Reddit-fueled trading mania spread to the health services company.

That Reddit-fueled trading mania also spread to Wendy's, with the fast-food restaurant surging as much as 26% amid the wide sharing of a bullish due-diligence post made on the Wall Street Bets forum.

Shares of Tesla moved higher after its May car sales in China showed a 29% surge.

Oil prices were lower. West Texas Intermediate crude dropped 0.4%, to $68.95 per barrel. Brent crude, oil's international benchmark, fell 0.5%, to $71.11 per barrel.

Gold fell 0.2%, to $1,895.20 per ounce.