NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Technology stocks rose and the broader market meandered near midday Tuesday as investors eyed falling oil prices and weaker-than-expected readings on consumer confidence and manufacturing.

The Dow Jones industrial average (up 10.64 to 12,097.14, Charts) added a few points, more than two hours into the session. The blue-chip barometer has closed at record highs in 13 of the previous 20 sessions.

The broader S&P 500 (up 0.97 to 1,378.90, Charts) index added a few points. Last week, the S&P 500 index touched a nearly 6-year high.

The Nasdaq (up 9.43 to 2,373.20, Charts) composite added nearly 0.4 percent. The tech-fueled index had ended the previous session near 5-1/2 year highs hit last week.

The major gauges had swayed on both sides of unchanged all morning, as investors took in the competing influences of upbeat earnings, lower oil prices and weaker economic news.

Stocks briefly turned negative after the release of the October Consumer Confidence report, but recovered some going into midday, a turnaround that seems to reflect the underlying bullishness in the market.

"It seems like no matter what, the market still wants to go up," said Ron Kiddoo, chief investment officer at Cozad Asset Management. "I think the market has room to keep moving higher through the rest of the year."

However, he noted that the gains over the last few days have been moderate and on light volume, due perhaps to the lack of any big positive catalyst, other than lower oil prices.

Should investors get another batch of good earnings or a positive monthly jobs report on Friday, the rally could recharge more decisively, he said.

The Consumer Confidence index slipped to 105.4 in October from an upwardly revised 105.9 in September. The number was a surprise to Wall Street economists, who were expecting a rise to 108, on average, following a big rally in the stock market and a period of lower oil prices.

The Chicago PMI was released at the same time. The regional read on manufacturing fell to 53.5 in October from 62.1 in September, when economists thought it would fall to 58, according to Briefing.com.

An earlier report showed that employment costs rose more-than-expected in the third quarter.

Rallying tech shares and falling oil prices boosted the Nasdaq Monday, but the Dow struggled on a disappointing sales outlook from Wal-Mart (Charts).

Earnings news Tuesday was more upbeat, but that didn't necessarily help the stocks of the companies reporting.

Dow component Procter & Gamble reported higher quarterly earnings and sales that topped estimates and boosted its full-year earnings outlook. But investors took a 'sell-the-news' approach and sent P&G (down $0.34 to $63.47, Charts) shares lower.

Marathon Oil (down $1.20 to $84.09, Charts) reported sharply higher profits that beat Wall Street forecasts thanks to sustained higher oil prices. The company also reported revenue that dipped from a year ago. Investors took profits on the stock, which has surged this year.

Late Monday, insurer MetLife (down $1.39 to $57.56, Charts) reported quarterly earnings and revenue that rose from a year earlier and topped estimates. However, investors bailed out of the stock Tuesday morning.

Verizon (down $0.88 to $36.77, Charts) also continued to slide, one day after the phone company reported strong quarterly earnings, but left investors concerned about the strength of its non-traditional businesses, including broadband.

Market breadth was negative. On the New York Stock Exchange, losers beat winners by a narrow margin on volume of 330 million shares. On the Nasdaq, decliners beat advancers five to four on volume of 460 million shares.

U.S. light crude oil for December delivery fell 86 cents to $57.50 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Treasury prices rallied, lowering the yield on the 10-year note to 4.61 percent from 4.67 percent late Monday. Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions.

COMEX gold for December delivery fell $1.40 to $606 an ounce.

Beware choppy waters ahead

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