Major Averages Climb Well Off Lows But Remain In The Red

(RTTNews) - Selling pressure has waned from earlier in the session, but stocks remain mostly negative in mid-day trading on Thursday. A weaker than expected reading on U.S. consumer spending continues to weigh on the markets.

While a majority of the major sectors have moved to the downside on the day, most are showing only modest moves.

Electronic storage stocks are seeing notable weakness, however, with the NYSE Arca Disk Drive Index down by 1.1 percent. Hutchinson Technology (HTCH) has helped to lead the sector lower, falling by 2.9 percent.

Semiconductor, trucking, software, and banking stocks are also seeing some weakness in mid-day trading, but selling pressure has waned from earlier in the session.

The major averages have climbed well off their worst levels of the day but currently remain firmly in the red. The Dow is down 66.27 points or 0.4 percent at 16,801.24, the Nasdaq is down 14.45 points or 0.3 percent at 4,365.31 and the S&P 500 is down 7.35 points or 0.4 percent at 1,952.18.