Mumbai, Aug. 18 -- U.S. stocks edged further from their record heights on Monday after rising oil prices cranked up the pressure on inflation and financial markets.

The S&P 500 fell 0.5% but remains near its all-time high set Thursday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 272 points (0.5%) and the Nasdaq composite slipped 0.3%.

Last month alone, Brent zigzagged between $72 and $102 as hopes rose and fell that the United States and Iran could reach a deal that would allow oil tankers to freely exit the Persian Gulf again.

A report last week said that shoppers surprisingly spent less at U.S. retailers last month than in June and CEOs for retailers could give color this week on what they're seeing. L3Harris Technologies fell 4.6% afte...