Wall Street again on edge

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NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- U.S. stock futures were littled changed Tuesday as investors weighed more losses from the financial sector and more problems in home values as they awaited reports on consumer confidence.

Less than two hours before the market open, Nasdaq and S&P futures were mixed and pointing to a flat start for Wall Street. They had been pointing to a modest gain earlier in the morning.

Art Hogan, chief market analyst at Jefferies & Co., said there wasn't any news to lift futures Tuesday, just a continuation of hopes by investors that the bottom has been reached for markets even if the nation is in a recession.

"If you look at the history of recessions, when we're half-way through, then the market starts to trade higher," said Hogan. "It's looking like the Bear Stearns deal is going to get done and that the XM-Sirius deal is going to get done. The worst news of the day hanging over the market is likely to be the consumer confidence."

More gains for stocks. Stocks gained for a second straight session Monday, lifted by JP Morgan Chase's (JPM, Fortune 500) decision to quintuple its bid for Bear Stearns (BSC, Fortune 500).

But that rally may run out of steam as investors take in more readings on the economy.

Just before the market open, the Case-Shiller index of 20 top markets showed a record 10.7% decline in home prices in January compared with a year ago, a further sign that the problems in housing have yet to bottom out.

The Conference Board's report on consumer confidence is slated for release at 10 a.m. ET. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com forecast that index fell to 73.4 from a reading of 75 in February.

In major corporate news, financier Carl Icahn's proxy battle with Motorola (MOT, Fortune 500) continues to heat up. Icahn said Monday that he had rejected an offer from management for two seats on the board of directors. Earlier in the day he announced he was suing Motorola to get access to some company documents. Icahn has presented a slate of four candidates for Motorola's 13-member board.

Satellite radio shares surge. The Justice Department approved the merger between satellite radio companies Sirius (SIRI) and XM (XMSR) late Monday. Approval of the Federal Communications Commission is still needed before the deal can be completed. Shares of both companies soared in last hour of trading, and both continued to gain in after-hours trading, with Sirius rising 3.5% and XM gaining 1.5%.

India's Tata Motors and Ford Motor (F, Fortune 500) appear to have reached a deal for Tata to buy Ford's Jaguar and Land Rover brands, according to a published reports, which said the formal announcement is expected Wednesday. Tata was identified as the lead bidder for the two British units of Ford three months ago.

Eyes on Fortress. Another look into the problems in financial markets came come when Fortress Investment (FIG), one of the first hedge funds to go public, reported a loss of $29 million, or 43 cents a share. But the loss was due primarily to principal compensation. Analysts surveyed by earnings tracker Thomson First Call expected the company to earn 17 cents a share, which still would have been weakest reported by the company since it went public 13 months ago.

Overseas markets rose sharply on the heels of Wall Street's advance. In Asia, Hong Kong shares ended up 6.4%. European markets climbed in early trading after a four-day trading holiday.

Oil prices fell to near the $100 a barrel mark in early trading. A barrel of light, sweet crude for May delivery lost 80 cents to $100.06 a barrel in electronic trading.