Major Averages End Lackluster Session Roughly Flat

(RTTNews) - Following the volatility seen over the past several sessions, stocks turned in a lackluster performance during trading on Friday. The major averages spent much of the day bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line before closing roughly flat.

Most of the major sectors ended the day showing only modest moves, contributing to the roughly flat close by the broader markets.

Gold stocks showed a substantial move to the upside on the day, however, with the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index surging up by 4.3 percent. The strength in the sector came as gold for December delivery climbed $11.40 to $1,134 an ounce.

Significant strength was also visible among energy stocks, which moved higher as crude oil for October delivery jumped $2.66 to $45.22 a barrel after surging up $3.96 to $42.56 barrel on Thursday.

Reflecting the strength in the energy sector, the Philadelphia Oil Service Index soared by 3.4 percent, the NYSE Arca Natural Gas Index jumped by 2.9 percent and the NYSE Arca Oil & Gas Index climbed by 1.7 percent.

Meanwhile, electronic storage stocks moved sharply lower, dragging the NYSE Arca Disk Drive Index down by 2.5 percent.

The index pulled back after moving sharply higher in the two previous sessions but remained well off the two-year closing low set on Tuesday.

The major averages ended the day on opposite sides of the unchanged line. While the Dow edged down 11.76 points or 0.1 percent to 16,643.01, the Nasdaq rose 15.62 points or 0.3 percent to 4,828.32 and the S&P 500 inched up 1.21 points or 0.1 percent to 1,988.87.

For the week, the major averages all moved higher due to the recovery rally on Wednesday and Thursday. The Nasdaq surged up by 2.6 percent, while the Dow and the S&P 500 advanced by 1.1 percent and 0.9 percent, respectively.