Major Averages Finish Choppy Session Near The Unchanged Line

(RTTNews) - Stocks fluctuated over the course of the trading day on Wednesday before ending the session nearly flat. Relatively light trading activity may have contributed to the volatility on Wall Street as some traders enjoy time away from their desks.

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

Gold stocks saw considerable strength on the day, however, with the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index surging up by 2.3 percent. Despite the strong gain, the index remains stuck in a recent trading range.

The strength among gold stocks came amid a sharp increase by the price of the precious metal, as gold for December delivery jumped $22.90 to $1,307.40 an ounce.

On the other hand, utilities stocks saw considerable weakness, extending a recent downward trend. The Dow Jones Utilities Average fell by 1.1 percent to a four-month closing low.

Telecom and trucking stocks also saw some weakness on the day, with Sprint (S) leading the telecom sector lower on news that it has ended talks to acquire T-Mobile (TMUS).

The major averages ended the day near the unchanged line, with the S&P 500 inching up just 0.03 points to 1,920.24. The Dow edged up 13.87 points or 0.1 percent to 16,443.34 and the Nasdaq crept up 2.22 points or 0.1 percent to 4,355.05.