Major Averages Close Mixed For Third Straight Session

(RTTNews) - After failing to sustain an initial upward move, stocks turned in a lackluster performance over the course of the trading day on Friday. The choppy trading came despite the release of a relatively upbeat monthly employment report.

While buying interest was initially generated by a report from the Labor Department showing stronger than expected job growth in the month of February, stocks were unable to sustain the early upward move.

The report suggested that the labor market held up relatively well in February despite severe winter weather, but traders seemed to question whether the data supports any further upside for the markets.

The major averages have moved steadily higher throughout much of the past month, with the S&P 500 reaching new record highs. The Nasdaq has also reached its best levels in almost fourteen years.

The report from the Labor Department showed that non-farm payroll employment rose by 175,000 jobs in February compared to economist estimates for an increase of about 150,000 jobs.

The major averages eventually closed mixed for the third consecutive session. While the Nasdaq dipped 15.90 points or 0.4 percent to 4,336.22, the Dow rose 30.83 points or 0.2 percent to 16,452.72 and the S&P 500 crept up 1.01 points or 0.1 percent to 1,878.04.

Nonetheless, the major averages all moved higher for the week due to the substantial rally seen on Tuesday. The S&P 500 jumped by 1 percent, while the Dow and the Nasdaq advanced by 0.8 percent and 0.7 percent, respectively.