Stocks have moved modestly higher in early trading on Tuesday, benefiting from a positive reaction to some upbeat earnings news. The major averages have all moved to the upside, offsetting the slim losses posted in the previous session.
The major averages are currently posting modest gains, near their highs for the young session. The Dow is up 59.36 points or 0.4 percent at 15,394.64, the Nasdaq is up 6.06 points or 0.2 percent at 3,502.50 and the S&P 500 is up 4.62 points or 0.3 percent at 1,670.91.
The early strength on Wall Street comes on the heels of the release of better than expected quarterly results from home improvement giant Home Depot (HD).
Home Depot, a Dow component, reported first quarter earnings of $0.83 per share on net sales of $19.1 billion, while analysts had expected earnings of $0.77 per share on sales of $18.7 billion. The company also raised its full-year earnings and sales guidance.
Medtronic (MDT), Saks (SKS), and AutoZone (AZO) are also posting notable gains in early trading after reporting their quarterly results.
Early strength is also visible among trucking stocks, as reflected by the 1.2 percent gain being posted by the Dow Jones Trucking Index. YRC Worldwide (YRCW) is posting another standout gain, surging up by 7.6 percent.
Banking, biotechnology, and telecom stocks are also seeing some early strength, while gold stocks have come under pressure after ending the previous session substantially higher.
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance during trading on Tuesday. While Japan's Nikkei 225 Index inched up by 0.1 percent, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index ended the day down by 0.5 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets have moved to the upside on the day. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index has risen by 0.3 percent, while the French CAC 40 Index is up by 0.2 percent and the German DAX Index is up by 0.1 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries have moved modestly lower, extending a recent downward move. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is up by 1.4 basis points at 1.979 percent.
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