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US job openings rise to 7.74 million in January

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Kohl's slides on bleak annual sales forecast

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Airlines weigh on Dow transports

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Indexes: Dow off 0.5%, S&P 500 up 0.07%, Nasdaq up 0.89%

(Updates to US afternoon trading)

By Chuck Mikolajczak

NEW YORK, March 11 (Reuters) - The Nasdaq and S&P 500

rose on Tuesday, reversing earlier declines as fresh U.S.

tariffs on Canada coupled with hopes of a possible peace deal

between Ukraine and Russia added up to a volatile session.

The S&P 500 index dropped as low as 5,528.41 points,

falling more than 10% during the session from its record closing

high of 6,144.15 on February 19, commonly known as a market

correction, as President Donald Trump said he would double

tariffs set to take effect within hours on all imported Canadian

steel and aluminum products to 50%.

The latest tariff salvo added to investor unease that

Trump's trade policies, which included tariffs against Canada,

Mexico and China, could trigger an economic slowdown or cause a

recession.

"That creates just angst and nervousness in the market, so

you're going to continue to get the 'shoot first, ask questions

later' type of reaction, which is exactly what you're getting,"

said Ken Polcari, chief market strategist at SlateStone Wealth

in Jupiter, Florida.

On Monday, the S&P 500 recorded its most significant one-day

drop since December 18, wiping out a staggering $4 trillion from

its recent peak. The tech-heavy Nasdaq confirmed a 10%

correction late last week.

But stocks reversed course after the U.S. agreed to resume

military aid and intelligence sharing with Ukraine immediately

after talks in Saudi Arabia in which Kyiv voiced readiness to

accept a U.S. proposal for a 30-day ceasefire in its conflict

with Russia, the countries said in a joint statement.

Adding to the positive momentum, the Ontario premier said he

had agreed to suspend the Canadian province's 25% surcharge on

exports of electricity to Michigan, New York and Minnesota.

"The market's looking for something to get hopeful about

after the last week or so, but we always say it's hard to make

changes based on something that might happen," said Chris

Fasciano, chief market strategist at Commonwealth Financial

Network in Waltham, Massachusetts.

"So until you see an idea, whether it's Russia, Ukraine, or

whether you see what tariffs are finally going to be or what

government spending is finally going to be, it's hard to make

wholesale changes in portfolios."

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 209.80 points,

or 0.50%, to 41,701.91, the S&P 500 rose 3.67 points, or

0.07%, to 5,618.23 and the Nasdaq Composite rose 155.14

points, or 0.89%, to 17,623.46.

Global markets have been upended since Trump sparked

back-and-forth tariff moves against major trading partners while

recent economic data has indicated the economy may be softening.

A reading on consumer prices on Wednesday will show if progress

is being made on tamping down inflation.

Meanwhile, a U.S. Labor Department report showed job

openings increased in January.

Gains were led by the technology and consumer

discretionary sectors, the two worst performing of the

11 major S&P sectors on the year.

Tariff uncertainty has also weighed on consumer sentiment,

with company executives increasingly flagging the impact it can

have on upcoming earnings.

Kohl's forecast a bigger-than-expected drop in

annual comparable sales, sending the retailer's shares

plummeting more than 20%.

Dick's Sporting Goods dropped nearly 6% after the

retailer forecast downbeat annual results.

Delta Air Lines ( DAL ) lost more than 6% after the carrier

slashed its first-quarter profit estimates by half.

American Airlines ( AAL ) declined 6.3% after the carrier

forecast a bigger-than-expected first-quarter loss. Weakness in

the airlines helped send the Dow transportation index

down 2.5%.

Oracle shed 3.4% after the cloud company missed

quarterly revenue estimates.

Citi became the latest brokerage to revise its stance on

U.S. stocks, downgrading its recommendation to "neutral."

Declining issues outnumbered advancers for a 1.2-to-1 ratio

on the NYSE but advancers outnumbered decliners by a 1.16-to-1

ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P 500 posted four new 52-week highs and 17 new lows,

while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 20 new highs and 332 new

lows.