NEW YORK: The Dow and the S&P 500 slipped on Tuesday as concerns over a new variant of the coronavirus and weak economic readings prompted investors to lock in recent gains, while the Nasdaq was kept in positive territory by Apple. US home sales fell more than expected in November, while consumer confidence unexpectedly declined this month following a spike in US infections and deaths.

Losses on the technology-heavy Nasdaq were limited by Apple Inc. The index also briefly hit a record high. Apple rose 2.5% after Reuters exclusively reported that the company was planning a push into vehicle and battery production. At 12:06 p.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 121.70 points, or 0.40%, at 30,094.75, the S&P 500 was down 6.97 points, or 0.19%, at 3,687.95, and the Nasdaq Composite was up 16.49 points, or 0.13%, at 12,759.01.

Electric-car maker Tesla Inc fell 3.4%, adding to a more than 6% slump in its first day of trading as part of the S&P 500 on Monday. Amgen Inc fell 2.3% and was among the top drags on the Dow, after it said its experimental asthma drug failed to meet the main goal of a late-stage study. The S&P index recorded 19 new 52-week highs and no new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 278 new highs and seven new lows.