Modest Strength Remains Visible On Wall Street - U.S. Commentary

(RTTNews) - While buying interest has remained relatively subdued, stocks continue to see modest strength in mid-day trading on Monday. With the gains on the day, the markets are extending the strong upward move that was seen last week.

The Dow briefly dipped into negative territory but is currently up 3.65 points or less than a tenth of a percent at 17,827.46. The Nasdaq is up 14.11 points or 0.3 percent at 5,119.03, and the S&P 500 is up 3.76 points or 0.2 percent at 2,092.93.

The strength that has emerged on Wall Street comes as stocks continue to recover from the sharp pullback seen earlier this month, with the major averages climbing back toward their recent highs.

A rebound by the price of crude oil has also generated some positive sentiment, as crude for January delivery is rising $0.32 to $42.22 a barrel after falling as low as $40.41 a barrel.

Trading activity has remained relatively light, however, with some traders staying on the sidelines on the heels of recent volatility.

The Thanksgiving Day holiday on Thursday and the unofficial Black Friday holiday may also be keeping some traders away from their desks.

Nonetheless, traders will be presented with a slew of U.S. economic data in the holiday-shortened week, including reports on new home sales, durable goods orders, and personal income and spending.

The National Association of Realtors released a report this morning showing that existing home sales pulled back by a little more than expected in October.

NAR said existing home sales fell 3.4 percent to an annual rate of 5.36 million in October after surging up 4.7 percent to a rate of 5.55 million in September. Economists had expected sales to drop to a rate of 5.40 million.

Sector News

Biotechnology stocks continue to see considerable strength, with the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index climbing by 1.5 percent. Earlier in the session, the index reached its best intraday level in two months.

Celldex Therapeutics (CLDX) has helped to lead the biotech sector higher, jumping 11.4 percent after reporting positive trial data for its experimental drug Rintega.

Considerable strength is also visible among natural gas stocks, as reflected by the 1.3 percent gain being posted by the NYSE Arca Natural Gas Index. The index is rebounding after ending the previous session at its lowest closing level in well over a month.

Retail, oil service, and airline stocks are also seeing some strength, while notable weakness has emerged among railroad stocks.

Other Markets

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance during trading on Monday. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell by 0.4 percent, while Australia's All Ordinaries Index rose by 0.4 percent. The Japanese markets were closed for a holiday.

Meanwhile, the major European markets all moved to the downside on the day. While the German DAX Index dipped by 0.3 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index dropped by 0.4 percent and 0.5 percent, respectively.

In the bond market, treasuries have climbed back near the unchanged line after seeing early weakness. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is down by less than a basis point at 2.261 percent.