* Europe woes vie with better US data
* Consumer confidence, Midwest manufacturing lend support
* Volatility index gains on short-term uncertainty
* Dow down 0.3 pct, S&P off 0.5 pct, Nasdaq off 1.1 pct
* For up-to-the-minute market news see []
(Updates to late afternoon, changes byline)
By Edward Krudy
NEW YORK, Nov 30 (Reuters) - Europe's debt crisis kept Wall
Street under pressure for a third straight session on Tuesday
but stocks were off their lows as investors took heart from
stronger-than-expected economic data.
The euro zone's troubles showed no signs of abating.
Investors pushed the single currency lower and spreads on bonds
of peripheral member states to new highs amid concerns they may
ultimately be forced to default. For details, see
[]
But in a rerun of the previous session, the S&P 500 erased
much of its losses after falling more than 1 percent, with
investors caught in a tug of war between Europe's woes and
signs of a more robust U.S. economy.
"There is no doubt, I think, that absent the troubles in
Europe ... we continue to get very supportive data in the
U.S.," said Bill Stone, chief investment strategist at PNC
Wealth Management in Philadelphia
Consumer discretionary stocks gained after U.S. consumer
confidence rose to its highest level in five months. Retailer
Gap Inc <GPS.N> rose 3.5 percent to $21.44, while Tiffany & Co
<TIF.N> added 2.8 percent to $62.31.
The improved consumer sentiment as well as a report showing
U.S. Midwest business activity grew faster than expected are
the latest in a series of reports that have made investors more
optimistic before Friday's November unemployment report.
[]
The Dow Jones industrial average <> dropped 28.68
points, or 0.26 percent, to 11,023.81. The Standard & Poor's
500 Index <.SPX> fell 5.60 points, or 0.47 percent, to
1,182.16. The Nasdaq Composite Index <> lost 26.52 points,
or 1.05 percent, to 2,498.70.
Global investors increased their exposure to equities in
November despite weaknesses on many bourses, while U.S. and
British fund managers stepped away from crisis-hit euro-zone
bonds, a Reuters asset allocation poll found.
<^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
For details on Reuters' latest asset allocation poll, see
[] [] and []
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^>
However, reflecting investors' fear over short-term
uncertainty, the CBOE Volatility Index, or VIX <.VIX>, rose 7.3
percent to 23.10.
Amid the economic reports, the S&P/Case-Shiller home prices
data was a fly in the ointment. Monthly prices fell more than
expected in September and prices from a year earlier rose more
slowly than forecast. []
But in a sign that investors may have grown too bearish on
the sector, the Dow Jones U.S. home construction index
<.DJUSHB> edged up 1.4 percent after closing Monday at its
lowest since July 2009. The index is down 12.8 percent this
year.
Google Inc <GOOG.O> weighed on the Nasdaq index following
media reports that the company is close to a deal to buy local
advertising website Groupon Inc in what could be the Internet
company's biggest acquisition to date. []
Google shares fell 3.9 percent to $559.54.
In other deal news, Swiss engineering group ABB <ABBN.VX>
is to buy U.S. industrial motors manufacturer Baldor Electric
Co <BEZ.N> for $3.1 billion to capitalize on a global push for
energy efficiency and boost its North American presence.
Baldor's stock soared 40.2 percent to $63.26 and topped the
list of percentage gainers on the New York Stock Exchange.
[]
(Reporting by Edward Krudy; Editing by Kenneth Barry)
