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U.S. stocks open lower after rally

Xinhua, March 31, 2015 Adjust font size:

U.S. stocks opened lower on Tuesday, slightly reversing the previous day's rally, as investors eyed economic data on the final day of the first quarter.

S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices, the leading measure of U.S. home prices, showed that home prices continued their rise across the country over the last 12 month, according to S&P Dow Jones Indices Tuesday. However, monthly data revealed slowing increases and seasonal weakness.

The S&P/Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index, which covers all nine U.S. census divisions, recorded a 4.5 percent annual gain in January 2015 versus a 4.6 percent increase in December 2014.

Wall Street rose sharply on Monday amid upbeat economic data and optimistic sentiment from overseas stock markets. U.S. equities rose more than 1 percent on Monday, with the Dow closing more than 260 points higher.

Following dovish comments from Fed Chair Janet Yellen on Friday, Richmond Federal Reserve President Jeffrey Lacker said on Tuesday that there is a strong case for an increase in the fed funds rate relatively soon.

European equities hit session lows Tuesday, as investors reacted to fresh economic data from the euro zone. The annual rate of inflation climbed to -0.1 percent in March 2015 from -0.3 percent in February, according to a flash estimate from Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union.

Shortly after the opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 79.87 points, or 0.44 percent, to 17,896.44. The S&P 500 shed 9.19 points, or 0.44 percent, to 2,077.05. The Nasdaq Composite Index lost 20.42 points, or 0.41 percent, to 4,927.02. Endi