Major Averages Remain Nearly Flat In Mid-Day Trading

(RTTNews) - Stocks continue to show a lack of direction in mid-day trading on Monday after turning in a lackluster performance throughout the previous session. Traders largely remain on the sidelines amid another holiday-interrupted week.

The choppy trading on Wall Street comes as many traders remain away from their desks following the Christmas Day holiday last Wednesday and ahead of the upcoming New Year's Day holiday.

While window dressing sometimes contributes to upward momentum for the markets in the final days of the year, investors seem reluctant to continue buying stocks following the recent strength.

Traders have largely shrugged off a report from the National Association of Realtors showing a much smaller than expected increase in pending home sales in the month of November.

Most of the major sectors are showing only modest moves, contributing to the lack of direction being shown by the broader markets.

The major averages are currently turning in a mixed performance, although they are all nearly flat. While the Dow is up 6.22 points or less than a tenth of a percent at 16,484.63, the Nasdaq is down 3.02 points or 0.1 percent at 4,153.58 and the S&P 500 is down 0.88 points or 0.1 percent at 1,840.52.