U.S. Stocks Finish Choppy Trading Session Mostly Lower

(RTTNews) - Following the substantial upward move seen last week, stocks fluctuated over the course of the trading session on Monday. The major averages bounced back and forth across the unchanged line before eventually closing in negative territory.

The major averages came under pressure going into the close, ending the session near their worst levels of the day. The Dow slid 211.16 points or 0.6 percent to 33,536.70, the Nasdaq tumbled 127.11 points or 1.1 percent to 11,196.22 and the S&P 500 slumped 35.68 points or 0.9 percent to 3,957.25.

The volatility on Wall Street came as traders expressed some uncertainty about the near-term outlook for the markets following last week's rally.

With the upward move seen last Friday, the Dow reached a nearly three-month closing high, while the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 jumped to their best closing levels in almost two months.

Traders may also have been reluctant to make significant moves, with a lack of major U.S. economic data keeping some traders on the sidelines.

Reports on producer prices, retail sales, import and export prices, industrial production, housing starts and existing home sales are likely to attract attention in the coming days.

Traders are likely to look to the reports for additional clues about the strength of the economy and the outlook for interest rates.

The lower close on the day came despite comments from Federal Reserve Vice Chair Lael Brainard that added to optimism about a slower pace of rate hikes.

"I think it will probably be appropriate soon to move to a slower pace of rate increases," Brainard told Bloomberg News in a live interview.

Sector News

Housing stocks turned in some of the market's worst performances on the day, with the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index plunging by 2.9 percent after ending last Friday's trading at its best closing level in almost three months.

Substantial weakness was also visible among commercial real estate stocks, as reflected by the 2.5 percent slump by the Dow Jones U.S. Real Estate Index.

Banking stocks also showed a significant move to the downside, dragging the KBW Bank Index down by 2.3 percent. The index ended last Friday's trading at a two-month closing high.

Brokerage, retail and telecom stocks also saw notable weakness on the day, while pharmaceutical stocks showed a strong move to the upside.

Other Markets

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly lower during trading on Monday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index slumped by 1.1 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index edged down by 0.1 percent.

Meanwhile, the major European markets moved to the upside on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index advanced by 0.9 percent, the German DAX Index climbed by 0.6 percent and the French CAC 40 Index edged up by 0.2 percent.

In the bond market, treasuries gave back ground following the spike seen last Thursday. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, climbed 3.6 basis points to 3.865 percent.

Looking Ahead

Trading on Tuesday may be impacted by reaction to a report on producer price inflation, which could affect the outlook for interest rates.