Major Averages Close In Positive Territory

(RTTNews) - Stocks moved mostly higher over the course of the trading day on Monday, adding to the gains posted last week. While buying interest was somewhat subdued, the Dow and the S&P 500 still reached new record closing highs.

Biotechnology stocks showed a strong move to the upside on the day, contributing to a notable advance by the Nasdaq. The NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index jumped by 1.8 percent to a new record closing high.

Incyte (INCY), Illumina (ILMN), and Cepheid (CPHD) turned in some of the biotech sector's best performances.

Significant strength was also visible among airline stocks, as reflected by the 1.3 percent gain posted by the NYSE Arca Airline Index. Hawaiian Airlines parent Hawaiian Holdings (HA) and SkyWest (SKYW) posted standout gains.

Computer hardware, networking and semiconductor stocks also saw considerable strength, while gold and natural gas stocks moved lower along with their associated commodities.

The major averages all closed in positive territory, although the Dow inched up only 7.84 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 17,817.90. The tech-heavy Nasdaq advanced 41.92 points or 0.9 percent to 4,754.89 and the S&P 500 climbed 5.91 points or 0.3 percent to 2,069.41.