Stocks Continue To Turn In A Lackluster Performance - U.S. Commentary

(RTTNews) - Stocks have fluctuated over the course of the trading day on Thursday following the release of a mixed batch of economic data. While the Nasdaq has shown a notable upward move, the Dow and the S&P 500 have been bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line.

After ending the previous session at a record closing high, the Dow is currently nearly flat on the day, up just 1.54 points or less than a tenth of a percent at 16,582.38. The S&P 500 is up 2.25 points or 0.1 percent at 1,886.20, while the Nasdaq is up 28.34 points or 0.7 percent at 4,142.9.

The lackluster performance on Wall Street comes as the latest economic reports have offered a mixed picture ahead of the release of the Labor Department's monthly jobs report on Friday.

Reports on personal spending and manufacturing activity offered encouraging signs, but the positive sentiment has been offset by disappointing readings on weekly jobless claims and construction spending.

Before the start of trading, the Commerce Department released a report showing that personal spending surged up by 0.9 percent in March following an upwardly revised 0.5 percent increase in February. Spending had been expected to increase by about 0.6 percent.

The jump in spending, the biggest monthly increase since August of 2009, came amid a bigger than expected increase in personal income.

Additionally, the Institute for Supply Management released a report showing that its index of U.S. manufacturing activity rose by more than expected in the month of April.

The ISM said its purchasing managers index climbed to 54.9 in April from 53.7 in March, with a reading above 50 indicating growth in the manufacturing sector. Economists had expected the index to edge up to a reading of 54.3.

Meanwhile, the Labor Department released a separate report showing an unexpected increase in initial jobless claims in the week ended April 26th.

The report said initial jobless claims climbed to 344,000, an increase of 14,000 from the previous week's revised level of 330,000. The increase came as a surprise to economists, who had expected jobless claims to dip to 320,000.

The Commerce Department also released a report showing that construction spending rose by less than expected in the month of March.

As mentioned above, the choppy trading also comes as traders seem reluctant to make significant moves ahead of the release of the closely watched monthly jobs report Friday morning.

Sector News

Contributing to the strong upward move by the tech-heavy Nasdaq, internet stocks are seeing significant strength in mid-day trading. The Dow Jones Internet Composite Index has surged up by 2.2 percent, climbing further off the six-month closing low that it set on Monday.

Within the internet sector, Yelp (YELP) is posting a standout gain after the online local guide operator reported a narrower than expected first quarter loss and raised its full-year revenue guidance.

Airline stocks have also shown a strong move to the upside on the day, driving the NYSE Arca Airline Index up by 2.1 percent. Republic Airways (RJET) has helped to lead the sector higher, jumping by 9 percent after reporting strong first quarter earnings growth.

Considerable strength has also emerged among housing stocks, as reflected by the 1.3 percent gain being posted by the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index.

Biotechnology, telecom, and defense stocks are also seeing some strength on the day, while weakness is visible among gold and railroad stocks.

Other Markets

Overseas, many of the major markets were closed for May Day holidays. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index jumped by 1.3 percent on the day, while the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index rose by 0.4 percent.

In the bond market, treasuries have moved notably higher, extending the upward move seen in the previous session. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is down by 4.2 basis points at 2.606 percent.