Stocks slipped lower on Tuesday following Monday's broader market gains as traders reacted to weaker-than-expected data on U.S. retail sales and looked for direction ahead of the Federal Reserve's monetary policy decision on Wednesday.

U.S. retail sales fell at a more than anticipated rate in February, decreasing from January's spike, according to the U.S. Commerce Department's monthly report on Tuesday. Retail sales dropped 3.0% in February over January's upwardly revised 7.6% jump, missing consensus expectations for a 0.5% drop.

One year after the market crashed in response to the start of the coronavirus pandemic, the CBOE Volatility Index (VIX), or the market's "fear index," declined to a pandemic-era low of 19.37 on Tuesday. The VIX had maintained elevated levels throughout the pandemic, peaking at 85.47 on March 18, 2020.

Here's how the market settled on Tuesday:

S&P 500 Index (SPY  ): -0.16% or -6.26 points to 3,962.68

Dow Jones Industrial Average (DIA  ): -0.39% or -127.77 points to 32,825.69

Nasdaq Composite Index (QQQ  ): +0.09% or +11.86 points to 13,471.57

For Stocks, Google (GOOGL  ) announced on Tuesday that it will reduce Google Play app store fees to 15% on the first $1 million that a developer earns through the store per year, applying to all app developers. This move follows a recent one made by Apple (AAPL  ), although Apple's program only applies to developers that earn less than $1 million per year through the Apple App Store.

For Sector Performance, sectors fell mostly lower on Tuesday, with only Communication Services (XLC  ), Information Technology (XLK  ), Utilities (XLU  ) and Consumer Staples (XLY  ) closing in positive territory. Lead decliners were Financials (XLF  ), Industrials (XLI  ) and Energy (XLE  ).

For Commodities and Currency, the U.S. Dollar (UUP  ) ended Tuesday's session slightly higher as market participants awaited the outcome of Wednesday's Fed meeting for the central bank's newest monetary policy decision. The dollar index, which tracks the dollar against six other currencies, was slightly up at 91.84 on Tuesday. Gold (GLD  ) prices slipped lower on Tuesday as investors awaited policy cues on interest rates from the Fed. Spot gold fell 0.2% at $1,729.21 per ounce, while U.S. gold futures settled 0.1% lower at $1,727.20 per ounce. Crude oil futures dropped lower on Tuesday as rising stockpiles in the United States added to demand recovery pessimism as many countries halted use of the AstraZeneca (AZN  ) coronavirus vaccine over safety concerns. International benchmark Brent Crude (BNO  ) slipped to $68.39 per barrel, while domestic index West Texas Intermediate (USO  ) declined 0.9% to $64.80 each.

For Wednesday, traders will be sensitive to afternoon remarks from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell on the central bank's latest monetary policy.