NEW YORK (AP) -- The stock market is closing higher as more U.S. companies deliver solid quarterly results.<br />
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Merck, Ameriprise Financial and the diesel engine maker Cummins were among the corporations reporting better-than-expected earnings.<br />
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The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose eight points, or 0.5 percent, to close at 1,878 Tuesday. Banks and technology stocks rose the most.<br />
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The Dow Jones industrial average rose 86 points, or 0.5 percent, to 16,535. The Nasdaq composite increased 29 points, or 0.7 percent, to 4,103.<br />
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Some companies posted results that disappointed investors. Coach slumped 9 percent after the luxury goods maker said its profit fell in the first three months of the year.<br />
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Bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.69 percent.
