US Stock Indexes Edge Higher

(AP) -- U.S. stock indexes shifted higher in afternoon trading Tuesday, bouncing back from modest losses earlier in the day following the attacks in Belgium. Health care stocks were among the biggest gainers, while airlines, cruise companies and travel booking sites lagged. European markets also bounced back from early losses.

KEEPING SCORE: The Dow Jones industrial average rose 16 points, or 0.1 percent, to 17,641 as of 1:05 p.m. Eastern Time. The Standard & Poor's 500 index gained three points, or 0.2 percent, to 2,055. The Nasdaq composite added 20 points, or 0.4 percent, to 4,829.

THE QUOTE: "The only sector that appears to be truly suffering, naturally, is anything having to do with travel," said J.J. Kinahan, TD Ameritrade's chief strategist. "And even many of those have recovered from earlier levels."

BRUSSELS ATTACKS: At least 31 people were killed on Tuesday when bombs struck the Brussels airport and one of the city's metro stations. Belgium raised its terror alert to the highest level. Airports across Europe tightened security. Germany's DAX rose 0.4 percent, while the CAC-40 in France edged up 0.1 percent. The FTSE 100 index of leading British shares was up 0.1 percent. Belgium's BEL 20 index rose 0.2 percent.

STAYING PUT: Several travel-related companies fell as investors weighed the potential fallout from the Belgium attacks. Royal Caribbean Cruises shed $2.45, or 3.1 percent, to $75.78, while Carnival lost $1.24, or 2.5 percent, to $48.54. American Airlines Group fell 49 cents, or 1.1 percent, to $42.98. Delta Air Lines fell 78 cents, or 1.6 percent, to $49.34. Priceline Group slid $34.43, or 2.5 percent, to $1,316.08, while Expedia fell $1.53, or 1.4 percent, to $109.35.

DRILL BITTEN: Transocean shed 45 cents, or 4.3 percent, to $10.08 a day after management said they don't expect drilling to increase any time soon. The outlook also weighed on other drilling companies. Ensco lost 26 cents, or 2.3 percent, to $11.07, while Helmerich & Payne slid 83 cents, or 1.4 percent, to $60.15.

ROUGH QUARTER: Clothing and accessories maker G-III Apparel Group slid 17.3 percent after it reported earnings and sales that fell short of Wall Street's expectations. The stock lost $9.54 to $45.69.

LUMPY RESULTS: Mattress Firm dropped 9.5 percent after the bedding retailer also reported weak fourth-quarter results and forecast a smaller-than-expected annual profit. The stock shed $4.06 to $38.63.

STRONG OUTLOOK: Akorn surged 39.6 percent after the generic drugmaker reported preliminary 2015 financial results and gave a strong profit forecast for this year. The stock gained $7.41 to $26.13.

BOUNCE BACK: Staples climbed 6.9 percent, recovering some of its losses from a day earlier, when a court battle over the office supply chain's proposed merger with Office Depot began. The stock added 67 cents to $10.24.

ASIA'S DAY: Japan's Nikkei 225 climbed 1.9 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index shed early gains, sliding 0.1 percent. South Korea's Kospi gained 0.4 percent, while Australia's S&P ASX 200 edged up 0.1 percent.

ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude was down 16 cents to $41.36 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, the benchmark for international oils, was up 18 cents to $41.72 a barrel in London.

BONDS AND CURRENCIES: U.S. government bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 1.90 percent from 1.92 percent late Monday. The euro was down to $1.1212 from $1.1242, while the dollar fell to 112.04 yen from 112.08.

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