Major Averages Close Firmly Negative But Well Off Worst Levels

(RTTNews) - Following the lackluster performance seen in the previous session, stocks remained mostly negative throughout the trading day on Wednesday. The markets did not show much reaction to the Federal Reserve's monetary policy announcement.

After moving notably higher over the past few sessions, steel stocks showed a substantial move back to the downside. The NYSE Arca Steel Index plunged by 2.8 percent, pulling back off the four-month closing high set in the previous session.

Industry giant U.S. Steel (X) led the sector lower after reporting an unexpected first quarter loss and cutting its full-year profit forecast.

Significant weakness was also visible among airline stocks, as reflected by the 2.8 percent drop by the NYSE Arca Airline Index. Spirit Airlines (SAVE) turned in one of the sector's worst performances after forecasting a notable drop in unit revenue in the current quarter.

Commercial real estate, trucking, and retail stocks also came under pressure on the day, contributing to the weakness shown by the broader markets.

On the other hand, oil service stocks moved sharply higher, driving the Philadelphia Oil Service Index up by 2.5 percent. The strength in the sector came as crude for June delivery jumped $1.52 to a four-month closing high of $58.58 a barrel.

Gold and banking stocks also saw some strength on the day, partly offsetting the weakness seen in the aforementioned sectors.

The major averages finished the session firmly in the red but well off their worst levels of the day. The Dow fell 74.61 points or 0.4 percent to 18,035.53, the Nasdaq dropped 31.78 points or 0.6 percent to 5,023.64 and the S&P 500 slid 7.91 points or 0.4 percent to 2,106.85.