Stocks open flat Tuesday

New York, NY, United States (AHN) – U.S. stocks were quiet on the open Tuesday, awaiting fresh reports on manufacturing, auto sales and corporate results for evidence pointing to strength in the U.S. economy.

Just before 10 a.m. on Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 13 points, the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index was virtually unchanged and the NASDAQ was up 3.

On the calendar for Tuesday are new readings on manufacturing, construction spending and auto sales.

Investors will be watching for signs to alleviate concerns that the recovery in the U.S. economy may be stalling.

U.S. stocks finished in the red Monday, closing out April on a weak note, following three months of solid gains. All three major U.S. indexes posted their worst month returns of the year in April.

Weighing on stocks of late are renewed concerns about Europe and a possible slowdown in China.

In world markets Tuesday, several exchanges were closed for holiday celebrations. Japan’s Nikkei ended the day lower by 1.8 percent, and Britain’s FTSE 100 was up 0.4 percent in midday trading.

In currencies and commodities, the dollar fell versus the euro, but gained against the British pound and Japanese yen.

Oil for June delivery shed 30 cents to $104.57 a barrel and gold futures gave back $1.50 to $1,662.50 a troy ounce.

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