Markets Close Modestly Higher

Solid gains in several big health care companies led major US stock indexes to end modestly higher Tuesday, the AP reports. UnitedHealth Group climbed 3.6%, the most in the Dow Jones industrial average, after issuing a strong forecast for earnings next year. Energy companies ended lower as the price of crude oil slumped. Investors seemed to doubt that an OPEC meeting this week will produce meaningful production cuts. The price of oil sank nearly 4%. Among energy companies, Hess fell 3.8%. The Dow rose 23 points, or 0.1%, to 19,121. The Standard & Poor's 500 index climbed 2 points, or 0.1%, to 2,204. The Nasdaq composite edged up 11 points, or 0.2%, to 5,279. (More stock market stories.)