Stocks dipped slightly Tuesday morning on a rising dollar, despite domestic data showing home price declines have eased and consumer confidence picked up in March.
By 12:29 p.m., the Dow Jones Industrial Average had given up most its early gains and was up 7 points at 10902. The S&P 500 was flat at 1173, and the Nasdaq was flat at 2405.
The euro fell after the International Monetary Fund said that Germany’s economic recovery is exposed to “substantial downside risks” caused by weakness in its banking sector. The U.S. Dollar Index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six other currencies, was up 0.2%.
Investors said the report on Germany came as little surprise and that light trading volume at the end of the quarter was likely causing more of the market’s dips.
“To the more sophisticated participants in the market, it’s pretty well known the German banking sector is still suffering through problems,” said John Brady, senior vice president at MF Global. “That news is baked into the cake. Much of the action is just end of quarter, light volume fluctuations.”
Materials led most sectors early. Financials and energy lagged, as crude-oil prices edged down slightly.
In housing, the S&P Case-Shiller home prices index showed Tuesday that prices in 10 major metropolitan areas were flat in January from a year earlier, while the index for 20 major metropolitan areas dropped 0.7% year over year. The readings last grew on a year-to-year basis in January 2007.
Compared with December, the 10-area index fell 0.2% and the 20-area index declined 0.4%. Adjusted for seasonal factors, the 10-city index rose 0.4% month on month in January, while the 20-city composite climbed 0.3%.
Gold futures declined. Treasurys were mixed, with the two-year note slightly up and the 10-year note down to yield 3.877%.
Dow Jones Newswires contributed to this report.
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