The U.S. stocks fell for the third straight session on Tuesday as intensified concerns on European debt problems weighed heavily on the market, offsetting better-than-expected economic data.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 46.47, or 0.42 percent, to 11,006.02. The Standard & Poor's 500 index dropped 7.21 points, or 0.61 percent, to 1,180.55 and the Nasdaq declined 26.99 points, or 1.07 percent, to 2,498.23.
Two shares fell for every one that rose on the New York Stock Exchange. The European debt problems continued to weigh on the market amid worries that the crisis may spread to other debt- burdened countries like Spain and Portugal and more expensive rescue efforts would be needed. The yields on Spain's 10-year bonds jumped on Tuesday to a high of 5.7 percent, more than twice of the yields in the previous session.
Two major U.S. economic reports released on Tuesday were better than expected, but did little to boost the market.
The Chicago Purchasing Managers' Index was 62.5 in November, better than the 60.0 reading economists were expecting. The Consumer Confidence Index rose in November to 54.1 from a revised 49.9 in October, according to the Conference Board.
Major indexes struggled to pare losses but still ended on a down note after President Barack Obama suggested he's willing to compromise with the Republicans on extending tax cuts.
For the month, the blue-chip index lost 112.47 points, or 1 percent, while the S&P 500 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq fell 0.2 and 0.4 percent, respectively.
In other markets, crude prices fell from the 2-week high on Tuesday as the U.S. dollar reached a 10-week high against the euro, which damped the demand for commodities.
Light, sweet crude for January delivery dropped 1.62 dollars to settle at 84.11 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Among stocks in focus, Google's shares fell nearly 5 percent after the web searching giant was reportedly planning to buy online discounter Groupon for 5 billion to 6 billion dollars. If the deal really happens, it will be Google's largest acquisition in history.
