Major Averages Continue To Linger Near The Unchanged Line

(RTTNews) - With traders tacking a break following the recent strength on Wall Street, stocks are turning in a lackluster performance during trading on Friday. Most traders have moved to the sidelines amid uncertainty about the near-term outlook for the markets.

Most of the major sectors are showing only modest moves, although gold stocks are seeing considerable weakness on the day. The NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index is down by 1.7 percent, partly offsetting the 7.9 percent gain posted on Thursday.

Profit taking is contributing to the pullback by gold stocks, which comes as the price of the precious metal is nearly flat.

Steel stocks are also giving back some ground after turning in a strong performance in the previous session, with the NYSE Arca Steel Index down by 1.7 percent after ending Thursday's trading up by 4 percent.

While trucking and commercial real estate stocks have also moved to the downside on the day, significant strength has emerged among electronic storage stocks. The NYSE Arca Disk Drive Index has risen by 1.5 percent, reaching its best intraday level in over a year.

Internet, airline, and banking stock stocks are also seeing some strength in mid-day trading, offsetting the weakness in the aforementioned sectors.

Currently, the major averages continue to linger near the unchanged line. While the Nasdaq is up 0.56 points or less than a tenth of a percent at 3,578.86, the Dow is down 6.88 points or less than a tenth of a percent at 15,454.04 and the S&P 500 is down 2.06 points or 0.1 percent at 1,672.96.