Wall St. Ends Higher on U.S. Home Sales and European Data

Wall St. Ends Higher on U.S. Home Sales and European Data.

Stocks on Wall Street posted modest gains on Tuesday, bringing indexes nearly back to the record levels they reached last week.

Home building companies rose sharply after a big increase in sales of new homes last month, and Best Buy soared after the electronics retailer reported a surge in profit as online sales increased.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 17.88 points, or 0.1 percent, to 18,547.30. The Standard & Poor's 500-stock index rose 4.26 points, or 0.2 percent, to 2,186.90 and the Nasdaq composite index rose 15.48 points, or 0.3 percent, to 5,260.08.

It was another quiet day in trading on Wall Street. Volume on the New York Stock Exchange was again below three billion shares, making it one of the slowest days of the year. Monday was the slowest day so far in 2016. Investors have had little in the way of economic data or company news to react to for the last couple of weeks, and many traders are on vacation in the ending days of summer.

The Dow Minute by Minute

Position of the Dow Jones industrial average at 1-minute intervals on Tuesday.

This week's biggest event is Friday, when the Federal Reserve chairwoman, Janet L. Yellen, is scheduled to speak at an annual conference of central bankers in Jackson Hole, Wyo. The Fed is not expected to raise interest rates at its September meeting, but Ms. Yellen's comments will be dissected for clues on the likelihood and timing of a future increase.

Investors did respond positively to a survey from the 19-country eurozone that showed business activity expanded in August at a modest but steady pace. It was a sign that companies were not overly worried about Britain's decision to leave the European Union. The IHS Markit survey of purchasing managers also reached a seven-month high.

Government bond prices were little changed. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note held steady at 1.55 percent. The dollar slipped to 100.22 yen from 100.29 yen late Monday. The euro fell to $1.1305 from $1.1323.

The DAX in Germany closed up 0.9 percent, and the CAC-40 in France rose 0.7 percent. Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.6 percent.

Stocks also benefited from news that Americans stepped up their purchases of new homes in July at the fastest pace in nearly nine years. Toll Brothers, the luxury home builder, rose nearly 9 percent, while PulteGroup and Lennar rose about 3 percent each.

2-Year Treasury Notes

High yield in percent.

In individual companies, Best Buy surged $6.43, or nearly 20 percent, to $39.25 after the retailer reported results that beat analysts' estimates. Notably, Best Buy said sales in stores open at least a year rose in the latest quarter, a sign that the company's turnaround strategy is working in the face of strong competition from Amazon and other online retailers.

The drug maker Mylan fell $2.28, or nearly 5 percent, to $45.62, the second-biggest drop in the S.&P. 500, after growing outrage over the skyrocketing price increases for Mylan's EpiPen product, which is used to treat people who may be suffering from a potentially life-threatening allergic reaction.

Republicans and Democrats in Congress have started asking questions about Mylan's price increases. The EpiPen, invented in the 1970s, used to be approximately $100 for two pens only a few years ago, but now costs about $600 for the same two pens.

Crude oil closed up 69 cents to $48.10 a barrel, while Brent crude, used to price oil internationally, rose 80 cents to $49.96.

In other energy trading, heating oil rose 1.5 cents to $1.502 a gallon, wholesale gasoline rose 1.5 cents to $1.499 a gallon and natural gas rose 8 cents to $2.761 per thousand cubic feet.

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