Dollar rises as report shows trade deficit drop

Wall Street fluctuated Tuesday on news from aluminum giant Alcoa Inc. late Monday that it lost $1.19 billion during the fourth quarter as demand for aluminum plunged. Investors are watching closely for companies' expectations for business conditions in 2009. JPMorgan Chase (JPM Quote), computer chip maker Intel (INTNC Quote) and drug company Genentech (DNA Quote) are among the companies reporting results this week.

In other trading Tuesday, the dollar rose to 1.1220 Swiss francs from 1.1131 francs late Monday, and advanced to 1.2278 Canadian dollars from 1.2148 Canadian dollars.