Nasdaq Posts Modest Gain But Dow And S&P 500 Remain Stuck In The Red

(RTTNews) - After moving mostly lower early in the session, stocks regained some ground over the course of the trading day on Tuesday. The major averages bounced well off their worst levels of the day, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq climbing into positive territory.

While many of the major sectors ended the day showing only modest moves, considerable weakness was visible among gold stocks. Reflecting the weakness in the gold sector, the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index fell by 1.6 percent.

The weakness among gold stocks came amid a decrease by the price of the precious metal, with gold for April delivery sliding $5 to $1,148.20 an ounce.

Chemical stocks also saw notable weakness on the day, dragging the Dow Jones Chemicals Index down by 1.2 percent to its lowest closing level in over a month. DuPont (DD) helped to lead the sector lower, falling by 3.1 percent.

Meanwhile, airline stocks showed a strong move to the upside over the course of the session, resulting in a 1.6 percent gain by the NYSE Arca Airline Index. American Airlines (AAL) posted a standout gain amid news that it will replace Allergan (AGN) in the S&P 500 Index.

Significant strength also emerged among steel stocks, as reflected by the 1.1 percent gain posted by the NYSE Arca Steel Index. The gain by the index came after it ended Monday's trading at a nearly six-year closing low.

While the Nasdaq managed to end the day up 7.93 points or 0.2 percent at 4,937.43, the Dow and the S&P 500 remained stuck in the red. The Dow slid 128.34 points or 0.7 percent to 17,849.08, while the S&P 500 dipped 6.99 points or 0.3 percent to 2,074.20.