Wall Street flat as Italian government teeters

Stocks were little changed in volatile trade on Tuesday as Italys government teetered on the brink in the latest turn in the long-simmering euro zone sovereign debt crisis.Reuters reported that Prime Minister, Mr. Silvio Berlusconi, appeared to lose his parliamentary majority after a key vote, piling further pressure on him to resign.Berlusconi won a vote on the ratification of the countrys debt-weighed public finances because the opposition abstained. But he obtained only 308 votes, below the 316 needed for an absolute majority in the 630-seat Chamber of Deputies."There is not a lot to focus on in terms of fundamentals, so, we are still trapped in this headline box, if you will, and every movement seems to be based on that," a director of equity trading at KeyBanc Capital Markets in Cleveland, Mr. Kevin Kruszenski, said."Maybe it is just another nail in the coffin of the entire euro crisis, slowly but surely it seems to be sort of unfolding and progress is being made," he added.The PHLX Europe sector index, which includes major European shares, advanced by 0.6 per cent.Italian 10-year borrowing costs touched a new record of 6.74 per cent, raising the risk that Romes massive debt, the second highest in Europe at 120 per cent of gross domestic product, could spiral out of control.The Dow Jones industrial average was down by 1.74 points, or 0.01 per cent, at 12,066.65. The Standard & Poors 500 Index was up by 1.96 points, or 0.16 per cent, at 1,263.08. The Nasdaq Composite Index added 6.68 points, or 0.25 per cent, at 2,701.93.With little on the US dollar economic calendar this week and earnings season drawing to a close, investors were fixed on Europe. According to Thomson Reuters data, of the 442 S&P 500 companies that have reported earnings, 70 per cent topped expectations.US markets have been closely tied to the fortunes of the euro while volatility has been tethered to sovereign debt. The euro hit a session high against the dollar ahead of the Italian vote.
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