Major Averages Pull Back Off Best Levels But Close Moderately Higher

(RTTNews) - After showing a strong upward move in early trading on Thursday, stocks gave back some ground over the course of the session but managed to close moderately higher. The gains on the day partly offset the steep losses posted in the previous session.

Despite the pullback by the broader markets, significant strength remained visible among retail stocks. The Dow Jones Retail Index ended the session well off its best levels of the day but still closed up by 1.4 percent.

Office Depot (ODP) and Staples (SPLS) turned in two of the retail sector's best performances amid optimism about a merger between the two office supplies retailers.

Airline stocks also held on to notable gains, resulting in a 1.2 percent advance by the NYSE Arca Airline Index. Delta (DAL) helped to lead the sector higher, jumping by 4.6 percent.

Networking, utilities, and computer hardware stocks also ended the day notably higher, while considerable weakness emerged among steel and gold stocks.

The major averages ended the day in positive territory but well off their highs for the session. The Dow rose 63.19 points or 0.4 percent to 17,596.34, the Nasdaq climbed 24.14 points or 0.5 percent to 4,708.16 and the S&P 500 advanced 9.19 points or 0.5 percent to 2,035.33.