US stocks extend gains after GDP data

US stocks continued to rally as Wall Street digested the newly-released US real gross domestic product (GDP) data.

On Tuesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 165.65 points, or 0.96 percent, to 17,417.27, Xinhua reported.

The S&P 500 added 17.82 points, or 0.88 percent, to 2,038.97. The Nasdaq Composite Index increased 32.19 points, or 0.65 percent, to 5,001.11.

The US Commerce Department announced on Tuesday that the third estimate of real GDP increased at an annual rate of 2 percent in the third quarter of 2015, slightly down from the second estimate of 2.1 percent but above market expectations of 1.5 percent.

Meanwhile, US total existing home sales plunged 10.5 percent in November from October's revised reading, logging the slowest pace in 19 months, the National Association of Realtors reported on Tuesday.

"New industry regulation, including the addition of new forms that must be submitted and processed, have contributed to an increase in the closing time and likely responsible for the large pull back in sales in November," said Sophia Kearney-Lederman, an economic analyst at FTN Financial.

The continued weak oil prices were still in focus. Brent oil price kept falling on Tuesday after hitting an 11-year low on Monday, as the market continued to be plagued by the global oversupply worries.

The West Texas Intermediate for February delivery moved up 33 cent to settle at $36.14 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while Brent crude for February delivery decreased 24 cents to close at $36.11 a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.

The CBOE Volatility Index, often referred to as Wall Street's fear gauge, decreased 11.23 percent to end at 16.60 on Tuesday.