Markets gains kept in check

U.S. markets posted tentative gains Tuesday after the Commerce Department said durable goods orders dropped far more than expected in January. The Commerce Department earlier said durable goods orders for U.S. manufacturers fell 4 percent in January, the steepest decline in three years. The Standard & Poor's Case-Shiller monthly price report on U.S. houses said prices fell in both its 10-city and 20-city indexes in December. The Dow Jones industrial average again flirted with the 13,000-point mark, gaining 17.82 points or 0.14 percent to 12,999.33. The Standard & Poor's 500 index gained 2.07 points or 0.15 percent to 1,369.66. The Nasdaq composite index rose 12.20 or 0.41 percent to 2,978.36. The benchmark 10-year treasury note lost 1/32 to yield 1.931 percent. The euro rose to $1.3457 from Monday's $1.3398. Against the yen, the dollar fell to 80.51 yen from 80.61 yen. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index gained 0.92 percent, 88.59 points, to 9,722.52. In London, the FTSE 100 index gained 0.21 percent, 12.36, to 5,927.91.