Major Averages Slide Firmly Into Negative Territory

(RTTNews) - After initially showing a lack of direction, stocks have moved notably lower over the course of the trading day on Friday. The pullback on the day is extending the sharp drop seen in the previous session, with the Dow and the S&P 500 falling to two-month lows.

Networking stocks are showing another notable move to the downside after helping to lead the markets lower in the previous session. The NYSE Arca Networking Index has tumbled by 2.1 percent, falling to its lowest intraday level in well over two months.

Within the networking sector, Arris Group (ARRS) has plunged by 13.7 percent despite reporting better than expected second quarter results and providing upbeat guidance.

Computer hardware stocks are also adding to yesterday's steep losses, with the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index falling by 1.8 percent. The index is pulling back further off the record closing high it set on Wednesday.

Significant weakness has also emerged among banking stocks, as reflected by the 1.8 percent loss being posted by the Dow Jones Banks Index. JP Morgan (JPM) is turning in one of the sector's worst performances, falling by 2.8 percent.

Brokerage, energy, software, and telecom stocks have also come under pressure on the day, extending the broad based weakness seen on Thursday.

The major averages have climbed off their worst levels in recent trading but remain firmly negative. The Dow is down 100.56 points or 0.6 percent at 16,462.74, the Nasdaq is down 38.07 points or 0.9 percent at 4,331.70 and the S&P 500 is down 11.33 points or 0.6 percent at 1,919.34.