Shares on Wall Street rose for a second day on Tue, climbing to session highs in the last hour of trading. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 264.36 pts, or 0.8%, to close at 33,180.14. The S&P 500 index rose 0.95%. The Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.94%. The small cap Russell 2000 gained 1.57%.
US equities opened on a negative note, after retailer Target (TGT US, -2.31%) said that it will cut its profit outlook, as it cancels orders and marks down unwanted merchandise. Target warned in May that it was dealing with a glut of inventory in "bulky categories" like kitchen appliances and outdoor furniture.
The 10-year Treasury note slipped 6.63 basis points (bps) to 2.9736%, while the yield on the 2-year Treasuries closed nearly flat.
The front-month Brent and WTI futures closed up $1.06 at US$120.57/bbl and 91 cents at US$119.41/bbl respectively.
The ICE dollar index (DXY), which measures the strength of the greenback against a basket of currencies, fell 0.12% to 102.318. The dollar hit a 20-year high versus the yen for a second day.
The most actively traded US gold futures (Aug) contracts settled up $8.40, or 0.5%, at US$1,852.10/oz. July silver, which is the most actively traded silver futures, rose 8.6 cents, or 0.4%, to end at US$22.178/oz.
European equity markets finished lower on Tue. The UK FTSE lost 0.12%, France's CAC 40 fell 0.74%, while the German DAX retreated 0.66%.