Major Averages Close In The Red After Seeing Early Strength

(RTTNews) - After failing to sustain an early upward move, stocks came under pressure over the course of the trading session on Monday. With the pullback on the day, the major averages partly offset the strong gains posted last week.

Biotechnology stocks showed a substantial move to the downside over the course of the trading day, dragging the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index down by 4 percent. The index pulled back further off the one-month closing high set last Thursday.

ImmunoGen (IMGN) helped to lead the sector biotech sector lower, tumbling by 11 percent as traders continued to digest news of two drug development setbacks.

Significant weakness also emerged among trucking stocks, as reflected by the 1.4 loss posted by the Dow Jones Trucking Index. Werner Enterprises (WERN) posted a particularly steep loss on the day.

Utilities, pharmaceutical, retail, and housing stocks also came under pressure on the day, contributing to the pullback by the broader markets.

On the other hand, considerable strength remained visible among gold stocks, as reflected by the 1.9 jump by the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index. The strength in the sector came as gold for June delivery surged up $28.20 to $1,203.20 an ounce.

The major averages moved roughly sideways going into the close, stuck in negative territory. The Dow slipped 42.17 points or 0.2 percent to 18,037.97, the Nasdaq slid 31.84 points or 0.6 percent to 5,060.25 and the S&P 500 fell 8.77 points or 0.4 percent to 2,108.92.