US stocks mixed, as investors eye Europe

NEW YORK: US stocks were mixed as markets opened on Tuesday, with investors focused on the latest developments in Europe's sovereign debt crisis.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 6.55 points (0.06 percent) to 11,054.57 in the first 20 minutes of trading.

The broader S&P 500 climbed 3.04 points (0.09 percent) to 1,165.31, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 13.19 points (0.53 percent) to stand at 2,508.28.

European stocks were higher after seesawing wildly amid rumors that Germany and France were preparing a new rescue plan for Greece -- which were denied by Berlin and Paris -- and following reports that China was in talks to buy Italian bonds.

"This is a market that is all over the map -- literally -- with headlines out of China, the US, and Europe in particular driving things," said Patrick O'Hare, an analyst with Briefing.com.

In company news, shares of electronics retailer Best Buy slumped 6.2 percent after the company reported that its second-quarter profit fell 30 percent amid weak consumer spending and cut its earnings forecast.

Best Buy has been assailed by doubts about how it will survive competition from online retailers like Amazon.com, which has been moving aggressively into the electronics market.

Bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note increased to 1.97 percent from 1.93 percent late Monday, while that on the 30-year bond rose to 3.27 percent from 3.24 percent.

Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions.

Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2011