Major Averages Close Firmly In Negative Territory

(RTTNews) - After initially showing a lack of direction, stocks moved sharply lower over the course of the trading day on Monday. The weakness that emerged on the day came after the markets turned in a lackluster performance over the past few sessions.

After trending higher in recent sessions, biotechnology stocks showed a substantial move back to the downside. The NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index tumbled by 2.2 percent, pulling back off the record closing high set last Friday.

Biogen Idec (BIIB) and InterMune (ITMN) turned in two of the biotech sector's worst performances, falling by 5.2 percent and 4.4 percent, respectively.

Housing stocks also came under considerable pressure on the day, dragging the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index down by 2.2 percent. The loss by the index came after it ended the previous session at its best closing level in over seven months.

Significant weakness was also visible among oil stocks, which moved lower along with the price of crude oil. With crude for February delivery sliding $0.92 to $91.80 a barrel, the NYSE Arca Oil Index dropped by 2 percent.

Software, retail, natural gas and chemical stocks also saw notable weakness on the day, while gold stocks bucked the downtrend by the broader markets.

The major averages climbed off their worst levels going into the close but remained firmly in the red. The Dow tumbled 179.11 points or 1.1 percent to 16,257.94, the Nasdaq plunged 61.36 points or 1.5 percent to 4,113.30 and the S&P 500 plummeted 23.17 points or 1.3 percent to 1,819.20.