Major Averages Posting Moderate Gains In Early Trading

(RTTNews) - Stocks have fluctuated over the course of early trading on Tuesday following the sell-off that was seen in the previous session. The major averages have been moving back and forth but have largely maintained a positive bias.

The choppy trading on Wall Street comes on the heels of the substantial weakness seen on Monday, which saw the Dow tumble by more than 300 points.

While some traders have used the pullback to pick up stocks at somewhat reduced levels, a continued decrease by the price of crude oil is weighing on the markets.

A recent report from the Institute for Supply Management showing a notable slowdown in the pace of service sector growth in December has also limited the upside.

Nonetheless, gold stocks are turning in a strong performance in early trading, driving the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index up by 3.8 percent. The strength in the sector comes as gold for February delivery is climbing $7.80 to $1,211.80 an ounce.

Utilities, steel and tobacco stocks are also seeing early strength, while most of the other major sectors are showing more modest moves.

Currently, the major averages are posting moderate gains. The Dow is up 71.76 points or 0.4 percent at 17,573.41, the Nasdaq is up 5.93 points or 0.1 percent at 4,658.51 and the S&P 500 is up 8.60 points or 0.4 percent at 2,029.18.