Why the stock market can’t break through the 4,200 ceiling on the S&P 500

With a few exceptions, 4,200 on the S&P 500 has proven to be a nearly impenetrable barrier for U.S. stocks over the past year.

Seemingly like clockwork, the large-cap U.S. equity benchmark on Tuesday was retreating from that level once again as stocks suffered a steep daily fall. The S&P 500 SPX was down around 48 points, or 1.2%, near 4,120 in late afternoon trade, after hitting an intraday high around 4,186 on Monday.

Earlier,…