By Yashaswini Swamynathan
(Reuters) - The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq hit record intraday highs for the second day in a row on Tuesday as market volatility dropped to a decade low following Emmanuel Macron's victory in the French presidential election and strong U.S. corporate earnings.
The VIX, Wall Street's "fear gauge", hit 9.57 points, the lowest since late 2006, a day after closing at its lowest level in over two decades. A falling VIX typically indicates a bullish outlook for stocks.
The 10-year U.S. Treasury yield rose to its highest in a month, while gold prices fell, indicating a shift in investor preference for riskier assets.
At 9:34 a.m. ET (1334 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 21.5 points, or 0.1 percent, at 21,033.78.
The S&P 500 was up 2.57 points, or 0.11 percent, at 2,401.95, slightly below its all-time high of 2,402.42.
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The Nasdaq Composite was up 11.72 points, or 0.19 percent, at 6,114.38, after hitting an all-time high of 6,116.47.
Five of the 11 major S&P sectors were higher, while the typically defensive plays such as utilities and telecom services fell.
Since Donald Trump's election in November the S&P 500 has risen nearly 14 percent, raising questions about market valuations. However, solid first-quarter earnings could allay some of those fears.
S&P 500 earnings on average have grown 14.4 percent, up from 10.1 percent estimated at the start of the earnings season, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
Shares of Valeant Pharmaceuticals jumped more than 16 percent after the company posted its first profit in six quarters.
Endo International, Office Depot and Marriott also rose after reporting better-than-expected quarterly earnings.
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners on the NYSE by 1,447 to 1,013. On the Nasdaq, 1,279 issues rose and 868 fell.
The S&P 500 index showed 19 52-week highs and no lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 37 highs and 11 lows.
(Reporting by Yashaswini Swamynathan in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva)