Major Averages Move To The Upside In Early Trading

(RTTNews) - Stocks have moved mostly higher in early trading on Tuesday, regaining some ground after falling sharply over the past few sessions. The major averages have all moved to the upside, with the Nasdaq bouncing into positive territory after moving lower at the open.

Bargain hunting is contributing to the early strength on Wall Street, with traders picking up stocks at reduced levels after the major averages ended Monday's trading at their worst closing levels in over a month.

The markets have also benefited from the release of a report from the Conference Board showing a continued improvement in consumer confidence in the month of January.

A separate report from Standard & Poor's showing continued home price growth in November also helped to offset any negative sentiment generated by a Commerce Department report showing an unexpected drop in durable goods orders in December.

Housing stocks have moved sharply higher on the heels of the report on home prices, with D.R. Horton (DHI) leading the way higher after reporting better than expected first quarter results. The Philadelphia Housing Sector Index has surged up by 3.2 percent.

Biotechnology, steel, healthcare, and airline stocks are also seeing significant strength, moving higher along with most of the other major sectors.

Meanwhile, some computer hardware stocks are bucking the uptrend, with shares of Apple (AAPL) tumbling by 7.3 percent. The loss by Apple comes after the tech giant reported weaker than expected iPhone sales and provided disappointing revenue guidance for the current quarter.

The major averages have pulled back off their highs for the young session in the past few minutes but currently remain positive. The Dow is up 73.62 points or 0.5 percent at 15,911.50, the Nasdaq is up 8.07 points or 0.2 percent at 4,091.67 and the S&P 500 is up 8.96 points or 0.5 percent at 1,790.52.