Major Averages Hovering In Positive Territory In Mid-Day Trading

(RTTNews) - Buying interest has remained somewhat subdued, but stocks have moved modestly higher over the course of the trading day on Friday. With the upward move, the markets are extending the rally seen in the previous session.

Despite the modest strength being shown by the broader markets, substantial weakness is visible among oil service stocks. Reflecting the weakness in the oil service sector, the Philadelphia Oil Service Index is down by 3.3 percent.

Within the oil service sector, Schlumberger (SLB) is posting a notable loss after reporting weaker than expected third quarter revenues.

Steel stocks have also shown a significant move to the downside, dragging the NYSE Arca Steel Index down by 2.1 percent. Universal Stainless (USAP) and Olympic Steel (ZEUS) are turning in two of the sector's worst performances.

Airline, railroad, and electronic storage stocks have also come under pressure on the day, while some strength is visible among pharmaceutical and tobacco stocks.

Currently, the major averages remain in positive territory. The Dow is up 52.91 points or 0.3 percent at 17,194.66, the Nasdaq is up 6.69 points or 0.1 percent at 4,876.79 and the S&P 500 is up 5.20 points or 0.3 percent at 2,029.06.