Major Averages Close Firmly In Positive Territory

(RTTNews) - After coming under pressure at the start of trading, stocks showed a significant rebound over the course of the trading session on Monday. The volatility on the day came amid the release of a mixed batch of U.S. economic data.

Gold stocks showed a substantial move to the upside on the day, driving the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index up by 4.1 percent. The gain by the index came after it closed lower in the two previous sessions.

The rally by gold stocks came amid an increase by the price of the precious metal, with gold for December delivery climbing $5.70 to $1,118.40 an ounce.

Considerable strength also emerged among biotechnology stocks, as reflected by the 2.5 percent gain posted by the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index. The gain by the index came after it ended last Friday's trading at a three-month closing low.

Telecom stocks also turned in a strong performance, resulting in a 1.6 percent gain by the NYSE Arca North American Telecom Index. Sprint (S) led the sector higher, jumping by 10.1 percent.

Airline, housing, and healthcare stocks also saw notable strength on the day, moving higher along with most of the other major sectors.

The major averages finished the session firmly in positive territory. The Dow rose 67.78 points or 0.4 percent to 17,545.18, the Nasdaq jumped 43.46 points or 0.9 percent to 5,091.70 and the S&P 500 climbed 10.90 points or 0.5 percent to 2,102.44.