Major Averages Lingering Near The Unchanged Line In Early Trading

(RTTNews) - Stocks are turning in another lackluster performance in early trading on Tuesday after ending the previous session roughly flat. The major averages are showing only modest moves on the day, lingering near the unchanged line.

The choppy trading on Wall Street comes amid uncertainty about the near-term outlook for the markets after recent strength lifted the Dow and the S&P 500 to record highs above key psychological levels. The tech-heavy Nasdaq has also risen to its best levels since 2000.

Some traders have also likely decided to remain away from their desks, getting a head start on the Thanksgiving Day holiday on Thursday.

Nonetheless, notable strength has emerged among housing stocks, as reflected by the 1.5 percent gain being posted by the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index. The gain has lifted the index to its best intraday level in almost a month.

The strength among housing stocks comes on the heels of the release of a report showing that building permits jumped to a five-year high in October.

On the other hand, gold stocks have come under pressure in early trading, dragging the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index down by 1.5 percent. The losses by gold stocks come even though the price of the precious metal is roughly flat.

Currently, the major averages are turning in a mixed performance. While the Nasdaq is down 0.75 points or less than 0.1 percent at 3,993.82, the Dow is up 21.77 points or 0.1 percent at 16,094.31 and the S&P 500 is up 0.67 points or less than 0.1 percent at 1,803.15.