Major US indices declined a bit on Tuesday, after large companies released their latest investors' expectations reports.

In particular, the S&P 500 fell by 0.2% and closed at 3849.62 points, while the Nasdaq Composite sank 0.1% and reached 13626.06 points. As for the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the index fell by 0.1% and hit 30937.04 points.

This week will be the peak reporting season in the United States. Clearly, investors are closely monitoring it, and they are waiting if the figures will exceed the expected levels, as such will provide new incentives for growth.

So, yesterday, shares of General Electric rose by 2.7%, after releasing higher revenue and positive forecasts.

Johnson & Johnson, which reported an increase in sales in the last quarter, also saw a 2.7% jump in stocks.

Shares of Raytheon Technologies also increased by 1.4%, after the company revealed that its fourth-quarter earnings and revenues beat analysts' forecasts.

Starbucks also reported adjusted earnings, which exceed even the analysts' wildest scenarios. The company said the closure of coffee shops amid the pandemic had a negative impact on business.

Microsoft also reported growth in earnings and a 17% increase in sales, so as a result, the company's shares increased by 5.0%.

Stocks of GameStop also jumped by more than 92%, after reporting a sharp increase in demand from individual investors.

Shares of BlackBerry also rose by 0.5%, while stocks of Etsy slipped a bit (by 2.1%).

Meanwhile, the tourism and transportation sectors fell amid fears brought by the slow spread of COVID-19 vaccines. Shares of Rolls-Royce sank 3.4%, hitting their lowest level this year.

Other leading companies, such as Apple, Tesla and Facebook, are due to publish financial statements today.

In any case, Stoxx Europe 600 rose by 0.6%, while the yield on 10-year US government bonds rose to 1.039%.

As for the indices in Asia-Pacific, a rather strong fall was recorded. The Hang Seng index dropped by 2.6%, while the Shanghai Composite slipped by 1.5%. Nikkei 225 also fell by 1%, while the Kospi Composite declined by 2.1%.

At the same time, on Tuesday, the People's Bank of China unexpectedly pulled $ 12 billion out of the Chinese financial system through open market operations. This became an unforeseen event as traditionally, on the eve of Chinese New Year, the banking system needs additional liquidity.

Consumer confidence in the United States also reported an increase for January, having risen to 89.3 points, which confirms increased consumer optimism about the outlook for the US economy.

Data released on Tuesday also indicates that US house prices accelerated significantly at the end of last year. From early 2020 to late November, the nationwide S & P / CoreLogic / Case-Shiller home price index increased 9.5%.