Major Averages Stuck In The Red In Mid-Day Trading

(RTTNews) - After coming under pressure early in the session, stocks remain mostly negative in mid-day trading on Monday. Worries about developments overseas are weighing on the markets, overshadowing upbeat U.S. manufacturing data.

Railroad stocks continue to see substantial weakness in mid-day trading, with the Dow Jones Railroads Index down by 3.9 percent. The index is adding to the 4.8 percent loss that it posted last Friday.

The sell-off seen by railroad stocks over the past two sessions reflects concerns about the impact that the recent sharp drop in oil prices will have on the industry.

Considerable weakness also remains visible among oil service stocks, as reflected by the 3 percent loss being posted by the Philadelphia Oil Service Index. With the drop, the index has fallen to its lowest intraday level in two years.

The continued weakness among oil service stocks comes even though crude oil for January delivery is jumping $2.24 to $68.39 a barrel.

Steel, natural gas, internet, and airline stocks are also seeing significant weakness on the day, moving lower along with most of the other major sectors.

However, gold stocks have shown a strong move to the upside amid a sharp jump by the price of the precious metal. With gold for February delivery surging up $26.40 to $1,201.90 an ounce, the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index is up by 5.1 percent.

Currently, the major averages are stuck in the red, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq showing a sharp pullback. While the Nasdaq is down 64.69 points or 1.4 percent at 4,726.94, the S&P 500 is down 15.83 points or 0.8 percent at 2,051.73 and the Dow is down 52.70 points or 0.3 percent at 17,775.54.