Major Averages Holding On To Gains In Mid-Day Trading - U.S. Commentary

(RTTNews) - After moving to the upside early in the session, stocks remain mostly positive in mid-day trading on Tuesday. The major averages have all climbed into positive territory following the pullback seen in the previous session.

Currently, the major averages are holding on to moderate gains. The Dow is up 74.93 points or 0.4 percent at 21,310.60, the Nasdaq is up 34.39 points or 0.6 percent at 6,209.85 and the S&P 500 is up 7.39 points or 0.3 percent at 2,436.78.

The strength on Wall Street is partly due to bargain hunting, with traders picking up stocks at relatively reduced levels.

Nonetheless, trading activity is subdued ahead of tomorrow's Federal Reserve announcement on monetary policy.

While the Fed is widely expected to raise interest rates by a quarter point, traders will be paying close attention to the accompanying statement for clues about the outlook for rates.

On the U.S. economic front, the Labor Department released a report showing that producer prices were flat in the month of May.

The Labor Department said its producer price index for final demand was unchanged in May after climbing by 0.5 percent in April. Economists had expected the index to inch up by 0.1 percent.

Excluding food and energy prices, core producer prices rose by 0.3 percent in May following a 0.4 percent increase In April. Core prices were expected to rise by 0.2 percent.

Computer hardware stocks have shown a strong move to the upside, driving the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index up by 1.6 percent. Western Digital (WDC) and Logitech (LOGI) are posting standout gains.

Notable strength is also visible among energy and housing stocks, while most of the other major sectors are showing more modest moves.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance during trading on Tuesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index edged down by 0.1 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose by 0.6 percent.

The major European markets also ended the day mixed. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index edged down by 0.2 percent, the French CAC 40 Index rose by 0.4 percent and the German DAX Index climbed by 0.6 percent.

In the bond market, treasuries are showing a lack of direction as traders look ahead to the Fed announcement. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is up by less than a basis point at 2.216.