Stocks Move Modestly Higher Amid Light Trading - U.S. Commentary

(RTTNews) - After initially showing a lack of direction, stocks have moved modestly higher over the course of the trading day on Monday. Buying interest has remained subdued, although the Dow has still risen to a nearly two-month high.

Currently, the major averages are holding on to slim gains. The Dow is up 42.29 points or 0.3 percent at 17,126.78, the Nasdaq is up 9.39 points or 0.2 percent at 4,839.86 and the S&P 500 is up 1.19 points or 0.1 percent at 2,016.08.

The modest strength that has emerged on Wall Street extends the upward trend seen over the past couple weeks, with stocks recovering from the sell-off seen in August.

Trading activity has remained relatively subdued, however, with many traders sticking to the sidelines amid the Columbus Day holiday and a lack of major U.S. economic data.

Traders may also be reluctant to make any significant moves as the earnings season is due to pick up steam in the coming days.

The week will see the release of quarterly results from several financial giants, including JP Morgan (JPM), Bank of America (BAC), Wells Fargo (WFC), Citigroup (C), and Goldman Sachs (GS).

Intel (INTC), Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), General Electric (GE), and Netflix (NFLX) are also among the big-name companies due to report their results this week.

Later in the week, trading could also be impacted by reports on retail sales, industrial production, and producer and consumer price inflation.

Among individual stocks, shares of Infosys (INFY) have fallen sharply after the software services firm reported better than expected second quarter results but lowered its dollar revenue growth guidance. The company also announced the resignation of its CFO Rajiv Bansal.

Social media giant Twitter (TWTR) is also posting a steep loss on the day amid a report from Re/code that the company plans to announce layoffs across multiple departments this week.

On the other hand, shares of EMC Corp. (EMC) are extending their recent upward move on news the data storage company has agreed to be acquired by computer giant Dell for $67 billion.

Sector News

Airline stocks have shown a strong move to the upside on the day, driving the NYSE Arca Airline Index up by 2 percent. The gain extends a recent uptrend by the index, which has risen to its best intraday level in nearly two months.

SkyWest (SKYW) has helped to lead the sector higher, with the regional airline soaring by 9.1 percent to a six-year high.

Utilities stocks are also turning in a strong performance in mid-day trading, resulting in a 1.1 percent advance by the Dow Jones Utilities Average. With the gain, the average has reached its best intraday level in well over a month.

On the other hand, energy stocks have come under pressure on the day, moving lower along with the price of crude oil. Crude for November delivery is currently slumping $1.09 to $48.54 a barrel.

Railroad, gold, and computer hardware stocks have also moved to the downside, partly offsetting the strength seen in the aforementioned sectors.

Other Markets

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher on Monday. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index jumped by 1.2 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index surged up by 3.3 percent. The Japanese market was closed for a holiday.

Meanwhile, the major European markets turned in a mixed performance on the day. While the German DAX Index edged up by 0.2 percent, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index fell by 0.7 percent and the French CAC 40 Index dipped by 0.3 percent.

The U.S. bond market is closed on the day due to the Columbus Day holiday and will reopen on Tuesday.