Major Averages Lingering Below The Unchanged Line In Mid-Day Trading

(RTTNews) - After moving mostly lower earlier in the session, stocks continue to see modest weakness in mid-day trading on Wednesday. Selling pressure has remained relatively subdued, however, limiting the downside for the markets.

While most of the major sectors are showing only modest moves on the day, considerable weakness has emerged among gold stocks. The NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index has fallen by 1.2 percent, hitting its lowest intraday level in a month.

The weakness among gold stocks comes amid a continued decrease by the price of the precious metal, with gold for April delivery sliding $10 to $1,198.60 an ounce.

Energy stocks have also come under pressure over the course of the session, moving lower along with the price of crude oil. Crude for March delivery is currently tumbling $1.19 to $52.34 a barrel.

Telecom and banking stocks have also moved to the downside on the day, while some strength is visible among airline and utilities stocks.

Currently, the major averages are all in negative territory, although the tech-heavy Nasdaq is down only 1.23 points or less than a tenth of a percent at 4,898.04. The Dow is down 29.84 points or 0.2 percent at 18,017.74 and the S&P 500 is down 4.10 points or 0.2 percent at 2,096.24.