Equities edged up Tuesday with support from earnings news and a good showing from megacaps. The Dow industrial average firmed 0.1 percent, the S&P 500 gained 0.3 percent, and the Nasdaq was up 0.6 percent. US Treasury yields, the dollar, and oil prices all rose for a second consecutive day.

Among sectors, best were information technology, materials, energy, and utilities. Lagging were real estate, industrials, consumer staples, and financials. Big technology shares fared well with Microsoft and Google due to report after the close.

Winners on positive earnings news included paint icon Sherwin Williams and Dow Chemical, plus homebuilders, paced by good news from Pulte. Nucor and Cleveland-Cliffs helped steel outperform. General Electric rallied on an earnings beat and news of rising jet engine orders.

Lagging were aerospace & defense, including RTX, off big after revealing a jet engine problem. Airlines lagged on bad news from Alaska Air, and appliances were hurt by an earnings miss at Whirlpool.

Market Reflections track market reaction to the trading day's major events. Economic data, policymaker speeches, and company news are featured in this report as well as key indexes and financial instruments.

Understanding why markets respond as they do is fundamental for an investor. Market Reflections help explain how the day's events, news, and data impact the outlook for the economy and for market prices.