1. U.S. stocks were lower on Tuesday after mixed earnings reports, weak durable goods data and lower crude prices.
Investors are also keeping an eye on the Federal Reserve, which begins its two-day policy meeting on Tuesday.
While expectations of a rate hike this week are low, focus will be on the Fed's interpretation of economic data and global financial events for a bearing on the timing of a liftoff.
Corporate results remain in sharp focus as investors scrutinize the reports for measures companies are taking to grow revenue and protect profit margins.
All eyes are on Apple (O:AAPL), which reports fourth-quarter results after the close, as investors await commentary on the iPhone maker's business in China and its forecast for the crucial holiday quarter.
2. Gold futures swung between small gains and losses on Tuesday, as investors digested a batch of mostly weaker than expected U.S. economic data while focusing on the start of the Federal Reserve's two-day monetary policy meeting due to begin later in the day.
Gold for December delivery on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange inched up $1.10, or 0.09%, to trade at $1,167.30 a troy ounce during European morning hours. A day earlier, gold tacked on $3.40, or 0.29%.
3. Oil prices fell on Tuesday, extending losses into a third week, on worries over a supply glut and with U.S. inventory data expected to show another increase in crude stocks.
Brent for December delivery had fallen 30 cents to $47.24 a barrel by 1150 GMT, after settling the previous session down 45 cents.
U.S. crude dropped 55 cents to $43.43 a barrel, having touched a nine-week low of $43.20 earlier on Tuesday.
An expected further build in U.S. crude stocks and a glut of refined products again raised concerns of an oversupplied market.
"We expect that the focus of the oil markets is rapidly shifting to the surplus of refined products," analysts at Jefferies wrote, adding that the bearish mood was aggravated by dropping refining profitability while demand growth slowed.
4. The U.S. dollar rose to nearly one-month highs against its Canadian counterpart on Tuesday, as declining oil prices weighed on the Canadian currency, although the greenback's gains remained limited ahead of the Federal Reserve's highly-anticipated policy statement this week.
USD/CAD hit 1.3200 during early U.S. trade, the pair's highest since October 23; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.3215, gaining 0.47%.
5. U.S. consumer confidence deteriorated to a three-month low in October, dampening optimism over the health of the economy and dimming the case for a U.S. interest rate hike this year, industry data showed on Tuesday.
In a report, the Conference Board, a market research group, said its index of consumer confidence fell to 97.6 this month from a reading of 102.6 in September, whose figure was revised from a previously reported 103.0. Analysts expected the index to rise to 103.0 in October.
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