U.S. stocks rebounded to close higher Tuesday, as the White House would welcome a temporary extension to the debt ceiling, with the Dow and Standard & Poor's 500 Index hitting more than five-year highs.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rallied 62.43 points, or 0.46 percent, to 13,712.13. The broader Standard & Poor's 500-stock Index gained 6.53 points, or 0.44 percent, to 1,492.51. The tech- heavy Nasdaq Composite Index edged up 8.47 points, or 0.27 percent, to 3,143.18.
The market rebounded strongly in afternoon session, offsetting all early losses, after receiving reports that U.S. President Barack Obama would not block a short-term extension of the debt limit that is scheduled to pass the House of Representatives Wednesday.
The equity market opened flat due to mixed earnings results from notable U.S. companies and weak stock markets in Asia and Europe, after a closing of trading Monday for the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday.
Verizon Communications shares reversed early losses to trade 0. 89 percent higher at 42.92 U.S. dollars though the telecom giant's quarterly earnings released before the opening bell missed analysts' expectations.
Shares of Johnson & Johnson edged down 0.71 percent to 72.71 dollars. The company's earnings report released Tuesday was generally positive, but its downside 2013 earnings guidance led to the stock's weakness.
Delta Air Lines said Tuesday that its fourth-quarter profit was nearly wiped out by Superstorm Sandy and special charges, meeting market estimates. Shares of the Atlanta-based carrier added 2.87 percent to 14 dollars, leading the Dow transportation sector.
DuPont shares gained 1.74 percent to 47.81 dollars after the chemical producer issued 2013 earnings guidance above market expectations.
IBM shares moved up 0.83 percent to 196.08 dollars after the company reported this afternoon its fourth quarter revenue and earnings per share topped analysts' expectations.
Shares of Google jumped over 3 percent after the tech giant reported after closing bell that its revenue in its core Internet business surged 22 percent to 12.91 billion U.S. dollars in the fourth quarter.
On the economic front, U.S. existing home sales for December lose one percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.94 million units, weaker than market prediction, the National Association of Realtors said Tuesday.
Tuesday's gains followed a third consecutive week of gains due to upbeat economic data and progress on the U.S. debt ceiling issue.
