Stocks Turning In A Mixed Performance In Mid-Day Trading - U.S. Commentary

(RTTNews) - After moving higher at the start of trading on Tuesday, stocks have turned mixed over the course of the session. While the Nasdaq has managed to remain in positive territory, the Dow and the S&P 500 have pulled back into the red.

Currently, the major averages currently remain on opposite sides of the unchanged line. The Nasdaq is up 19.31 points or 0.4 percent at 5,013.92, while the Dow is down 73.07 points or 0.4 percent at 17,961.86 and the S&P 500 is down 2.66 points or 0.1 percent at 2,097.74.

The choppy trading on Wall Street may partly reflect uncertainty about the near-term outlook for the markets following the volatility seen over the past few days.

A lack of major U.S. economic data may also be keeping traders on the sidelines ahead of next week's Federal Reserve meeting.

The economic calendar will pick up in the comings days with the release of reports on weekly jobless claims, durable goods orders, and new and existing home sales.

Traders are also digesting the latest batch of earnings news, as big-name companies like IBM (IBM), DuPont (DD), and Verizon (VZ) have recently reported their quarterly results.

Earnings news is likely to remain in focus after the close of trading, with Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG), Yahoo (YHOO) and Yum! Brands (YUM) among the companies due to report their results.

Among individual stocks, shares of Mylan (MYL) have moved sharply higher on the day amid news Teva Pharmaceutical (TEVA) offered to acquire the drug maker for $82 per share.

Chip equipment maker Lam Research (LRCX) is also turning in a strong performance after reporting better than expected quarterly results.

On the other hand, shares of Sanmina (SANM) have fallen sharply after the contract electronics maker reported quarterly results that missed estimates and provided disappointing guidance.

Sector News

Despite the lackluster performance being turned in by the broader markets, oil service stocks have shown a significant move to the downside on the day. The Philadelphia Oil Service Index has tumbled by 2.3 percent, pulling back further off the four-month closing high set last Wednesday.

The weakness among oil service stocks comes amid a decrease by the price of crude oil, with crude for June delivery sliding $0.31 to $57.57 a barrel.

Railroad stocks have also come under pressure after seeing significant strength in the previous session. After surging up by 2.6 percent on Monday, the Dow Jones Railroads Index is down by 1.8 percent.

Natural gas and chemical stocks have also moved to the downside on the day, while strength is visible among biotechnology and pharmaceutical stocks.

Other Markets

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Tuesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index surged up by 1.4 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index soared by 2.8 percent.

The major European markets also ended the day in positive territory. While the German DAX Index rose by 0.4 percent, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index and the French CAC 40 Index edged up by 0.2 percent and 0.1 percent, respectively.

In the bond market, treasuries have shown a lack of direction over the course of the trading session. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is up by less than a basis point at 1.897 percent.