Major Averages Posting Modest Gains In Early Trading

(RTTNews) - Stocks moved to the upside at the start of trading on Monday, adding to the strong gains posted last week. The major averages jumped firmly into positive territory but have not seen much follow-through on the initial upward move.

The early strength on Wall Street came as traders continued to react positively to last Friday's monthly jobs report, which showed stronger than expected job growth in the month of July.

Nonetheless, trading activity has remained somewhat subdued amid uncertainty about the looming corporate earnings season.

Aluminum giant Alcoa (AA) is scheduled to release its second quarter results after the close of trading, marking the unofficial start of earnings season.

Most of the major sectors are showing only modest moves in early trading, although some strength is visible among banking, natural gas and pharmaceutical stocks.

The major averages have pulled back off their highs for the young session but are currently holding on to modest gains. The Dow is up 60.67 points or 0.4 percent at 15,196.51, the Nasdaq is up 9.04 points or 0.3 percent at 3,488.42 and the S&P 500 is up 5.75 points or 0.4 percent at 1,637.64.