New York, US stocks dropped, dragged by losses in big tech names.

On Tuesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 104.53 points, or 0.38 per cent, to close at 27,686.91. The S&P 500 was down 26.78 points, or 0.80 per cent, to 3,333.69. The Nasdaq Composite Index decreased 185.53 points, or 1.69 per cent, to 10,782.82, Xinhua news agency reported.

Shares of Apple and Microsoft dipped 2.97 per cent and 2.34 per cent, respectively, leading the laggards in the Dow.

Shares of other US tech giants such as Facebook, Amazon, Netflix and Google-parent Alphabet also finished lower.

The S&P 500 technology and communication services sectors slipped 1.78 per cent and 1.3 per cent, respectively.

Earlier in the session, the Dow and the S&P 500 rallied as the market found some support from the reports that Russian President Vladimir Putin said the country has registered the world's first vaccine against the novel coronavirus.

US-listed Chinese companies traded mostly higher on Tuesday, with six of the top 10 stocks by weight in the S&P US Listed China 50 index ending the day on an upbeat note.