Dow And Nasdaq Turn Positive, S&P 500 Nearly Flat

(RTTNews) - After coming under pressure in early trading, stocks have fluctuated over the course of the trading session on Wednesday. The choppy trading comes on the heels of the strong upward move seen over the two previous sessions.

While many of the major sectors are showing only modest moves on the day, significant weakness remains visible among steel stocks. The NYSE Arca Steel Index has tumbled by 2.4 percent after closing high for three consecutive sessions.

A.M. Castle (CAS), Cliffs Natural Resources (CLF) and U.S. Steel (X) are turning in some of the sector's worst performances in mid-day trading.

Energy stocks also remain under pressure amid the decrease by the price of crude oil, giving back some ground following recent strength.

On the other hand, airline stocks have shown a strong move to the upside on the day, driving the NYSE Arca Airline Index up by 2.5 percent. United Continental (UAL) and American Airlines (AAL) are posting standout gains.

Currently, the major averages are turning in a mixed performance, with the S&P 500 just below the unchanged line. While the S&P 500 is down 0.15 points or less than 0.1 percent at 2,049.88, the Dow is up 59.09 points or 0.3 percent at 17,725.49 and the Nasdaq is up 3.81 points or 0.1 percent at 4,731.55.