02:03 PM EDT, 10/02/2024 (MT Newswires) -- US equity indexes were mixed in choppy trading as a pullback in crude oil amid rising government bond yields signaled the risk of a full-scale war between Israel and Iran could be coming off the boil, for now.

The Nasdaq Composite rose 0.2% to 17,950.5 after midday on Wednesday. The S&P 500 slipped less than 0.1% to 5,707.2, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average added less than 0.1% to 42,185.9. The indexes moved between gains and losses earlier in the session. Technology and energy were the sole gainers intraday, while consumer staples and discretionary led the decliners.

On Wednesday, Israeli forces and Iran-backed Hezbollah fighters engaged in fighting on the ground in southern Lebanon after Iran launched its largest-ever attack on Israel Tuesday, CNN reported. Iran's attack reportedly failed to cause any damage to Israel's critical civil and defense infrastructure as well as intelligence capabilities. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Iran had made a "big mistake" and "will pay," divulging little else about counter-attack plans.

"The missile strikes, including around 180 projectiles, come hours after Israel commenced ground operations in Lebanon, an action that Iranian diplomats had signaled during UN General Assembly week would constitute a redline," Helima Croft, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets, said in a note Wednesday. "Like in April, Iran provided advance warning of the military action, allowing US forces to mobilize for Israel's defense."

West Texas Intermediate crude oil was up 0.7% to $70.31 a barrel after trading more than 3% higher earlier in the day, giving up some of the Middle East risk premium. Excluding inventories in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, US commercial crude oil stocks rose by 3.9 million barrels in the week ended Sept. 27 after a 4.5-million-barrel drop in the prior week, versus the 1.4-million-barrel decline expected in a survey compiled by Bloomberg.

The CBOE Volatility Index, also known as the fear gauge for investors, declined 0.6% to 19.13, turning the corner from gains earlier in the session.

Most US Treasury yields rose intraday, with the 10-year yield up 4.4 basis points to 3.79%.

Gold fell 0.8% to $2,669.01 an ounce as demand for haven assets receded.

In economic news, ADP's monthly measure of private payrolls showed a 143,000 increase in September, above expectations compiled by Bloomberg for a 125,000 gain. The September jump followed an upwardly revised 103,000 jobs increase in August.

"Stronger hiring didn't require stronger pay growth last month," said Nela Richardson, chief economist at ADP. "Typically, workers who change jobs see faster pay growth. But their premium over job-stayers shrank to 1.9 percent, matching a low we last saw in January."

Mortgage applications fell 1.3% in the week ended Sept. 27 because of a slight uptick in mortgage rates, according to Mortgage Bankers Association data released Wednesday. The decline follows an 11% jump in overall activity in the week ended Sept. 20.

In company news, Humana (HUM) shares sank 13% intraday, the worst performer on the S&P 500, after the company disclosed in a regulatory filing that the number of members enrolled for 2025 in its Medicare Advantage Plans rated four stars or higher fell to 25% from 94% in 2024.

Nike ( NKE ) shares dropped 6.5% intraday, among the steepest decliners on the S&P 500 and the Dow, after the company reported lower fiscal Q1 earnings and revenue.