The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 22.96 points, or 0.07 percent, to 30,937.04. The S&P 500 was down 5.74 points, or 0.15 percent, to 3,849.62. The Nasdaq Composite Index decreased 9.93 points, or 0.07 percent, to 13,626.06.
All the three major indexes traded higher earlier in the day with the Dow up more than 160 points at session highs.
Six of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in red, with energy down 2.12 percent, leading the laggards. Real estate climbed 1.14 percent, the best-performing group.
U.S.-listed Chinese companies traded mostly lower with six of the top 10 stocks by weight in the S&P U.S. Listed China 50 index ending the day on a downbeat note.
Soaring COVID-19 infections continue to present a headwind.
The global COVID-19 caseload surpassed a grim milestone of 100 million, with related deaths exceeding 2.1 million as of Tuesday afternoon.
The United States has suffered most from the pandemic with more than 25.3 million confirmed cases and over 423,000 fatalities, showed a tally by Johns Hopkins University.
Investors also pored through a slew of earnings reports.
Johnson & Johnson shares advanced after the drugmaker delivered stronger-than-expected earnings and revenue and delivering an upbeat 2021 outlook.
Shares of General Electric rose 2.7 percent on its better-than-expected industrial free cash flow for the fourth quarter.
U.S. tech giants Apple and Tesla are set to report their earnings on Wednesday.
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