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Broader markets were little changed at midday as an encouraging reading on consumer confidence helped discretionary shares, offsetting the impact of weak revenue forecasts from drugmaker Bristol-Myers Squibb Co (BMY.N) and chip manufacturer Texas Instruments Inc (TXN.N). Investors view top-line growth as an indicator of economic activity.

U.S. Steel Corp (X.N), AK Steel Holdings Corp (AKS.N) and ArcelorMittal, the world's No. 1 steelmaker (MT.N)(ISPA.AS) all sold off after reporting results. Both U.S. Steel and ArcelorMittal also forecast a soft patch extending to the end of the year.

So far this earnings season, "there haven't been many misses or drastic news to the downside, except for U.S. Steel," said Jay Suskind, senior vice president at Duncan-Williams in Jersey City, New Jersey.

"If economies continue to grow slowly while commodity prices rise, material companies like that could have some problems."

The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI was down 5.91 points, or 0.05 percent, at 11,158.14. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index .SPX slipped 0.18 points, or 0.02 percent, at 1,185.44. The Nasdaq Composite Index .IXIC added 8.71 points, or 0.35 percent, at 2,499.56.

On the upside, Ford Motor Co (F.N) rose 1.6 percent to $14.37 and touched a six-month high after quarterly profit topped estimates and it paid down a big chunk of debt.

Broadly, equities continued to take their cue from the U.S. dollar, which steadied with the dollar index .DXY up 0.6 percent. Stocks and the greenback have formed an inverse relationship, exacerbated by expectations the U.S. Federal Reserve will embark on another round of economic stimulus.

U.S. Steel shed 4 percent to $40.56, while AK Steel slumped nearly 5 percent to $12.72. The Dow Jones U.S. Steel index .DJUSST lost 2.1 percent, while the S&P Materials index .GSPM dipped 0.5 percent.

Dow component International Business Machines Corp (IBM.N) rose 0.6 percent to $140.74 after boosting its stock buyback program.

DuPont and Co's (DD.N) earnings beat expectations and the chemicals giant raised its full-year profit view. Still, shares of the Dow component fell 2 percent to $46.76.

Bristol-Myers was down 1.3 pct to $26.80, while Texas Instruments slipped 0.7 pct to $28.78.

Consumer confidence rose more than expected, helping discretionary shares, even as confidence remained near historically low levels. The S&P Consumer Discretionary index .GSPD rose 0.5 percent.

Earlier, data showed single-family home prices fell for the second straight month in August, hovering near recent lows after the expiration of popular homebuyer tax credits.

(Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)

The reports reinforced the belief that the U.S. Federal Reserve will embark on another round of monetary policy stimulus to support the economic recovery next week.

U.S. consumer confidence rose slightly in October but remained near historically low levels as concerns about the labor market persisted.

The Conference Board, an industry group, said its index of consumer attitudes rose to 50.2 in October from a revised 48.6 in September.

The U.S. unemployment rate remains stubbornly high at 9.6 percent, according to the Labor Department.

The Federal Reserve, which has already injected $1.7 trillion into the economy by purchasing mortgage-related and government bonds, next meets on November 2-3. Another round of quantitative easing, dubbed 'QE2', is expected to focus on Treasury debt.

The weak labor market is one of the primary reasons why the housing market remains weak.

Prices of U.S. single-family homes fell for a second straight month in August, hovering around recent lows after the expiration of popular homebuyer tax credits, according a Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller home price report on Tuesday.

"At this point the big factor out there is the foreclosure situation and it certainly doesn't look very good. We have a lot of excess supply to work through, a lot of potential foreclosures and what appears to be an increasing legal mess," David M. Blitzer, chairman of the index committee at Standard & Poor's, said in an interview with Reuters Insider.

"It's going to take quite a while to get housing back on its feet," he said.

The housing market has been struggling since home buyer tax credits expired earlier this year. To take advantage of the tax credits, buyers had to sign purchase contracts by April 30. Contracts originally had to close by June 30, but that was extended by three months.

U.S. stocks were little changed with the S&P 500 stock index down 0.08 percent. U.S. Treasury debt fell in price, while the U.S. dollar extended gains versus the euro.

Another report on Tuesday showed home price gains in August. The U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency home price index is calculated using purchase prices of houses financed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

The housing market, however, remains highly vulnerable to setbacks and most economists believe a recovery will be elusive until the labor market improves.

(Editing by Andrea Ricci)

Ford, which expects to be solidly profitable this year, said it repaid $2 billion of debt in the third quarter, expects to pay off a debt to a union retiree healthcare trust fund on Friday and has launched an offer to encourage holders of two issues of its convertible notes to exchange them for shares, in an effort to further reduce its debt.

Ford shares, which touched a six-month high on Monday, were up 1.8 percent in afternoon trading after the release of the earnings results and debt-reduction plans, as the Dow Jones Industrial Average was essentially flat.

The automaker said it now expects cash on hand in its automotive business to at least match its debt by the end of 2010 -- a year ahead of a forecast it gave in July.

"Overall, we are moving from fixing the fundamentals of our business and weathering the downturn to growing the business profitably around the world," said Alan Mulally, who became Ford chief executive officer four years ago.

Ford, which posted losses totaling $30 billion from 2006 through 2008, borrowed $23.5 billion in late 2006 to support its turnaround, leaving it with much heavier debt loads than rivals General Motors Co and Chrysler Group LLC.

Dearborn, Michigan-based Ford last had an investment-grade credit rating in May 2005. Ratings agencies have raised Ford in recent months with its reporting of continued profits, and now have it overall two notches below investment grade.

Morningstar analyst David Whiston said Ford's debt reduction, elimination of non-profitable brands such as Volvo and Jaguar to concentrate on its mass-market Ford brand, and higher-quality vehicles have made a difference in results.

"They are making better vehicles that people want to pay up for, even in the small-car segment," Whiston said.

Ford introduced a Fiesta subcompact to the U.S. market earlier this year and plans to begin broad sales of a redesigned Focus compact car in early 2011 in a major upgrade of its lineup with smaller, better-equipped cars than in the past.

Mulally said this change toward more profitable sales at Ford is a key move in the past few years.

"Not too long ago, we were a discounted brand in the smaller- and medium-sized vehicles," said Mulally in a conference call with analysts.

Ford Chief Financial Officer Lewis Booth said sales remain strong and profit margins high for F-series pickup trucks, led by the F-150, which remains the best-selling vehicle in the United States.

Ford completed the sale of Volvo to China's Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd in August and has announced plans to phase out the Mercury brand, leaving it with additional resources to focus on the restoration of its Lincoln luxury brand.

The introduction of vehicles such as the redesigned Taurus and the Fiesta have allowed Ford to increase its average sale price significantly, contributing to profits and helping it increase its U.S. market share.