U.S. stocks closed lower on Tuesday, August 18: Dow Jones Industrial Average down 116.20 points (-0.22%) at 53,343.58; S&P 500 down 53.15 points (-0.69%) at 7,691.91; Nasdaq Composite down 355.20 points (-1.33%) at 26,289.71.

A source close to Iran's negotiating team rejected the White House's claim that talks had been canceled as "completely fabricated," saying there were no direct negotiations between Iran and the United States.

Koscom ETF Check (19th) shows Korea-listed ETFs saw heavy inflows into US equity trackers as domestic market volatility persists. Top monthly inflows: TIGER US S&P500 +1.12 tln won (~$807m), KODEX US Nasdaq 100 +707.3 bln won, TIGER US Nasdaq 100 +528.6 bln won, KODEX US S&P500 +437.3 bln won. Four of the seven largest inflow ETFs track major US indices. Retail investors led buying: one-month retail net purchases were led by TIGER US S&P500 +611.9 bln won, KODEX US Nasdaq 100 +418.4 bln won, KODEX US S&P500 +337.0 bln won; TIGER US Nasdaq 100 drew +287.4 bln won (ranked fifth).