Major Averages Close In The Red, Nasdaq Posts Substantial Loss

(RTTNews) - After failing to sustain an initial upward move, stocks moved mostly lower over the course of the trading session on Monday. With the pullback on the day, the markets partly offset the strength that was seen last week.

Gold stocks showed a substantial move to the downside on the day, dragging the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index down by 4 percent. With the loss, the index fell to its lowest closing level in well over a month.

The weakness among gold stocks came amid a sharp drop by the price of the precious metal, with gold for April delivery tumbling $24.80 to $1,311.20 an ounce.

Considerable weakness was also visible among biotechnology stocks, as reflected by the 2.5 percent loss posted by the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index. The index added the 3.9 percent loss posted last Friday, hitting a monthly closing low.

Networking and computer hardware stocks also saw significant weakness on the day, contributing to the steep drop by the tech-heavy Nasdaq.

Healthcare, oil service, and retail stocks also showed notable moves to the downside, while most of the other major sectors ended the day showing only modest moves.

The major averages all ended the day in the red, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq posting a particularly steep loss. While the Nasdaq tumbled 50.40 points or 1.2 percent to 4,226.39, the Dow edged down 26.08 points or 0.2 percent to 16,276.69 and the S&P 500 slid 9.08 points or 0.5 percent to 1,857.44.