S&P Snaps Four-Day Slump

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The broad S&P 500 snapped a four-day losing streak on Tuesday, helped by a round of upbeat corporate earnings and bargain hunting.

Today's Markets

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 7.8 points, or 0.05%, to 15003, the S&P 500 gained 6.3 points, or 0.38%, to 1652 and the Nasdaq Composite rose 24.5 points, or 0.68%, to 3614.

The markets added a fourth day to their losing streak Monday as worries about the end of the Federal Reserve's bond-buying program loomed large. Those losses ricocheted into global markets, where Asian and European shares took a beating.

U.S. futures stemmed the selling after home-improvement retailer Home Depot (NYSE:HD) revealed stronger-than-expected quarterly results amid a burgeoning housing recovery. Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) saw its profits rise as cost cuts helped the tech retailer push beyond tepid sales. Meanwhile, J.C. Penney (NYSE:JCP) revealed disappointing quarterly results, but shares rallied on encouraging signs about the current quarter.

Also in corporate news, the Justice Department launched a probe into J.P. Morgan Chase's (NYSE:JPM) energy business, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal.

Treasury bond yields receded after jumping in the previous session. The benchmark 10-year yield fell 0.053 percentage point to 2.829%.

Elsewhere, U.S. oil prices skid lower by 91 cents, or 0.9%, to $106.14 a barrel. Wholesale New York Harbor gasoline dipped 0.8% to $2.91 a gallon. Gold fell 0.04% to $1,365 a troy ounce.

Foreign Markets

The Euro Stoxx 50 sold off by 1.1% to 2791, the English FTSE 100 dipped 0.5% to 6433 and the German DAX slid 0.84% to 8296.

In Asia, the Japanese Nikkei 225 plunged 2.6% to 13396 and the Chinese Hang Seng plummeted 2.2% to 21970.