NEW YORK (Reuters) – The Dow and SP 500 advanced for a second day on Tuesday as stronger-than-expected consumer confidence data and hopes for further progress on a solution to Europe’s fiscal mess bolstered sentiment.
However, in a sign investors are still nervous about the European debt crisis, defensive sectors such as utilities and consumer staples were among the best performers. The Nasdaq composite index also closed lower.
Helping to lift the mood on Wall Street, the Conference Board, an industry group, said its index of consumer confidence jumped to its highest level since July, handily topping economists’ forecasts.
Financial shares limited the advance, with the SP financial index (.GSPF) down 0.6 percent. Shares of Bank of America (BAC.N) dropped 3.2 percent to $5.08, its lowest closing level since March 2009.
Bank shares have been battered by worries that the impact of the euro zone crisis could spread through the global financial system and
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