STOCKS struggled to post gains as the market mulled upwardly revised data on US economic growth and ongoing tensions.
The tension has been caused over Greece's finances that weighed on the eurozone.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average drifted up 25.92 points (0.25 per cent) to 10,346.95 after a mixed opening.
The Nasdaq composite gained 5.36 points (0.24 per cent) to 2,238.58 while the broad-market Standard & Poor's 500 index edged up 3.20 points (0.29 per cent) to 1,106.13.
Market action came after the US government revised upward its estimate for fourth-quarter growth to a 5.9 per cent pace, slightly better than expected.
But in Europe, Greece's prime minister said the country risks bankruptcy unless strict austerity measures are enacted fast to cut its deficit and reports said the European Union wants even more belt-tightening.
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"Depending on the day - and sometimes the hour - the global economic recovery story is either intact or it is coming undone,'' said Patrick O'Hare at Briefing.com.
"Greece is either going to succeed with its fiscal austerity measures or it is not... The disparate views are the basis for a market that can't seem to make up its mind where it wants to go. That indecision, in turn, has manifested itself in some choppy trading activity.''
A separate report showed US existing-home sales fell 7.2 per cent in January to the lowest level since last June, raising doubts on the sector that was at the epicentre of the global financial crisis.
But Ian Shepherdson at High Frequency Economics said the volatility in the numbers may reflect government tax credits that were set to expire but then extended by Congress.
"We are inclined to see this as the continued hangover from the homebuyer tax credit, which was supposed to expire November 30 but was then extended,'' he said.
"People could not be sure it would be extended though so sales were brought forward to meet the deadline, leaving a temporary void after November. We still expect sales to rise strongly over the next few months.''
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