HOME IMPROVEMENT: The Dow clawed back a large chunk of Monday's Italy-inspired losses after Home Deport reported that its net income surged in the latest quarter thanks to strong U.S. sales and the cleanup that followed Superstorm Sandy.

NEW HOMES: The government said Tuesday that sales of new homes jumped 16 percent last month. The report pushed up stocks of homebuilders such as PulteGroup, D.R. Horton and Lennar Corp.

STILL PUMPING: Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke delivered the central bank's semiannual monetary report to Congress. He gave no signal that policymakers might shift away from the Fed's low-interest-rate policy.