US stocks closed mostly lower Tuesday as the S&P 500 snapped a seven day winning spree, but the blue-chip Dow Industrials staged a late-session turnaround to finish at a record high for the sixth straight day.
Meanwhile, amid the continuing saga of Washington’s budget wars, House Republicans introduced a plan to cut the deficit to $528 billion in fiscal 2014 and then to $69 billion by 2016. The budget proposal released by House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan Tuesday kicked off a debate that is expected to bring a 10-year budget proposal from senate Democrats on Wednesday.
After rising 31 points and falling 35, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) finished 3 points higher at 14,450, marking its sixth consecutive closing high and eighth gain in as many sessions, the longest streak since Feb 9, 2011.
The S&P 500 Index (SPX) shed 4 points and ended less than 14 points from its all-time closing high hit in October 2009. Financials, technology and industrials slid the most while telecommunications fared the best among its 10 business group.
Treasury prices rose Tuesday, pushing yields lower for the first time in seven days as investors sought the safety of shorter-maturity debt while the Treasury Department sold $32 billion in three year notes.
The US dollar, meanwhile, eased on Tuesday as the Japanese yen rose against the greenback for the first time in a week, rebounding from a 3 ½-year low as some investors chose to take profits on recent large bets made against the Japanese currency.
European stock indexes finished almost flat Tuesday with the Stoxx Europe 600 index hovering near 4 ½ -year highs as UK manufacturing output unexpectedly contracted, reinforcing fears the economy is slipping back toward recession.
The Stoxx Europe 600 index added less than 0.1 percent to close at 295.37 after falling as much as 0.2 percent and gaining as much as 0.2 percent.
National benchmark indexes advanced in 10 of the 18 western-European markets. The UK’s FTSE 100 and France’s CAC 40 rose 0.1 percent while Germany’s DAX 30 shed 0.2 percent.
With the market indexes just about treading water, our Trend Tracking Indexes (TTIs) followed suit and barely moved from yesterday’s close. The Domestic TTI ended up at +3.36%, while the International TTI closed the day at +10.57%.
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