Major Averages Close Slightly Higher After Lackluster Session - U.S. Commentary

(RTTNews) - Stocks showed a lack of direction during trading on Monday following the weakness seen in the previous week. The major averages spent the day bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line before closing slightly higher.

The Dow inched up 0.84 points or less than a tenth of percent, the Nasdaq crept up 3.11 points or 0.1 percent to 5,880.93, and the S&P 500 ticked up 1.61 points or 0.1 percent to 2,357.17.

While an increase by the price of crude oil and news on the merger-and-acquisition front generated early buying interest, traders quickly cashed in on the early gains.

The economic calendar for the week starts off relatively quiet but picks up in the coming days, including with the release of some key data while the markets are closed on Friday.

Reports on retail sales, producer and consumer prices, and import and export prices may attract attention later this week.

Traders also continue to keep an eye on geopolitical developments following the U.S. strike on a Syrian airbase in retaliation for a chemical weapons attack on civilians.

Despite the lackluster close by broader markets, significant strength was visible among oil service stocks. Reflecting the strength in the sector, the Philadelphia Oil Service Index surged up by __ percent.

The strength among oil service stocks comes amid an increase by the price of crude oil, with crude for May delivery climbing $0.84 to $53.08 a barrel.

Trucking stocks also saw seeing notable strength, while steel, semiconductor and brokerage stocks came under pressure.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance during trading on Monday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index advanced by 0.7 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index slid by 0.5 percent.

Meanwhile, the major European markets moved modestly lower on the day. While the U.K.'S FTSE 100 Index closes just below the unchanged, the German DAX Index dipped by 0,2 percent and the French CAC 40 Index fell 0.5 percent.

In the bond market, treasuries fluctuated amid the chopping trading on Wall Street. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, dipped by 1.2 basis points at 2.361 percent.