North American stocks are expected to rise at the open Tuesday as oil prices ease amid tentative signs that the United Kingdom and Iran could be close to a deal to free 15 sailors.

Crude-oil futures dropped 34 cents at US$65.60 a barrel amid news that a senior Iranian diplomat said Tuesday that the standoff between the U.K. and Iran over the seizure of the 15 U.K. sailors and marines by the Islamic republic last week should be resolved very soon.

In today’s economic data, pending U.S. home sales data for February are due at 10:00 ET.

There are no major economic releases from Statistics Canada today.

The Canadian dollar opened at US86.45¢, down 0.06 of a cent.

Auto makers will be reporting their March sales results throughout the day.

In earnings news, Corus Entertainment said it is raising its annual dividend by 16% after swinging to a second-quarter profit of $19.5 million on strong broadcasting revenue, from a year-earlier loss of $65.7 million.

Overseas, the Nikkei 225 rose 1.3% in Tokyo, and the FTSE 100 rose 0.4% in London.

On Monday, Toronto stocks soared on a strong day in the resource sectors, powered by higher commodity prices.

The S&P/TSX composite index gained 100.30 points, or 0.76%, to 13,265.80.

Nine of the 10 TSX main groups closed higher.

The junior S&P/TSX Venture composite index moved up 3.23 points, or 0.10%, to 3,190.06.

In New York, markets moved higher, after a volatile day of trading, as investors shrugged off some negative economic reports.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained 27.95, or 0.23%, to 12,382.30, the Nasdaq composite index moved up 0.62 of a point, or 0.03%, to 2,422.26, and the S&P500 gained 3.69, or 0.26%, to 1,424.55.