The Lowdown

Stocks and most exchange-traded funds remained tepid Tuesday, with little data and few results to spark any market momentum.

Tech stocks rose after Cisco Systems announced the release of a new routing system, but largely flattened by the close. The Dow Jones Industrial Average picked up 12 to close at 10564. The S&P 500 finished up 2 at 1140, and the Nasdaq ended up 8 at 2341.

"It may be the first anniversary of the global equity-market rebound from the lows of March 2009, but with volumes slowing and Wall Street finishing rather mixed, the temptation may well be to leave the champagne on ice for a little longer yet as this latest rally runs out of steam," Ben Potter, a research analyst at IG Markets, said in a note to clients.

No significant economic data were released Tuesday. Chicago Fed President Charles Evans spoke on the still shaky economic outlook. He said unemployment could still rise and added that low interest rates will be needed "for some time."

In Washington, Greece's Prime Minister George Papandreou is scheduled to meet with President Obama. Pressure on debt-laden Greece has eased after the nation approved additional austerity measures and successfully sold a new 10-year bond last week.

Speaking at the Brookings Institution on Monday, Papandreou reiterated that Greece hasn't requested a bailout, but he wants European support to ensure that his nation can borrow in the global markets.

In the commodity markets, April oil futures were down 56 cents to $81.31 a barrel on Nymex.

Gold futures also dropped, with the April contract down $4.10 to $1,119.90 an ounce. The U.S. dollar rose against most other major currencies, weighing on dollar-denominated commodities such as gold and oil.

For a detailed rundown on Tuesday s trading session see our market story.

Winners

A solid showing for the All Ordinaries Index pushed the iShares MSCI Australia Index Fund up 1.0%. The Claymore/BNY Mellon BRIC fund picked up 1.0% as well.

Losers

Continued strength in oil prices pushed natural gas down, dropping shares of the United States Natural Gas fund 1.0%. The Market Vectors Junior Gold Miners fund slid 0.9%.

Tuesday s Industry Headlines

Launching Pad

Asset manager Eaton Vance, a Boston-based investment has sought permission from the Securities and Exchange Commission to begin preparing a quintet of actively managed exchange-traded funds focusing on investment-grade U.S. debt. The proposed funds are the Eaton Vance Enhanced Short Maturity ETF, the Eaton Vance Government Limited Maturity ETF, the Eaton Vance Intermediate Municipal Bond ETF, the Eaton Vance Prime Limited Maturity ETF and the Eaton Vance Short Term Municipal Bond ETF. They will invest in dollar-denominated securities. Legg Mason filed a similar request last month.

Wednesday s Notebook

Earnings and Conference Calls

A.M. Castle, AFC Enterprises, Alliance Laundry Holdings, American Eagle Outfitters, Asset Acceptance Capital, Bon-Ton Stores, Brown-Forman, Capital Senior Living, Carrizo Oil & Gas, Citizens, Clarient, Clayton Williams Energy, CombiMatrix, Datalink, Dialysis Corporation of America, Elbit Systems, EMS Technologies, FuelCell Energy, Gymboree , Hawk, Hill International, Hot Topic, iGo, Inter Parfums, Interval Leisure Group, Jo-Ann Stores, Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Littlefield, Mannatech, Men's Wearhouse, Metabolix, Navistar International, Newtek Business Services, Oil-Dri Corporation of America, Optelecom-NKF, Perma-Fix Environmental Services, Presstek, Providence Service, QLT, Quality Distribution, RAE Systems, ReneSola, Semtech, SMTC, Speedway Motorsports, Standard Parking, TechTarget, The Children's Place Retail Stores, The Descartes Systems, Turkcell, US Concrete, Vail Resorts, Willbros Group

Economic Data

7:00 a.m. MBA Purchase Applications
10:00 a.m. Wholesale Trade
10:30 a.m. EIA Petroleum Status Report
2:00 p.m. Treasury Budget