U.S. Stocks Close Nearly Flat After Lackluster Session

(RTTNews) - Stocks showed a lack of direction throughout the trading session on Monday as traders seemed reluctant to make any significant moves. The major averages spent the day bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line.

The major averages eventually ended the session mixed. While the Dow inched up 14.92 points or 0.1 percent to 26,949.99, the Nasdaq slipped 5.21 points or 0.1 percent to 8,112.46 and the S&P 500 edged down 0.29 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 2,991.78.

The lackluster performance on Wall Street came as a lack of major U.S. economic kept some traders on the sidelines.

Reports on consumer confidence, new home sales, durable goods orders and personal income and spending are likely to attract attention in the coming days.

Traders also continued to express uneasiness about the global economic outlook following the release of disappointing European economic data.

Survey data from IHS Markit showed the euro area private sector was close to stalling at the end of the third quarter. The flash composite output index unexpectedly fell to a 75-month low of 50.4 in September from 51.9 in August.

Germany's private sector contracted the most since late 2012 as a downturn in manufacturing deepened and service sector growth lost momentum.

Waning optimism about a potential U.S.-China trade deal also weighed on the markets after the Chinese cut short a visit to the U.S. last week and President Donald Trump indicated he is not in a hurry to reach an agreement.

Sector News

Most of the major sectors ended the day showing only modest moves, contributing to the lackluster close by the broader markets.

Gold stocks showed a significant move to the upside, however, with the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index surging up by 2.3 percent.

The rally by gold stocks came amid a sharp increase by the price of the precious metal, as gold for December delivery jumped $16.40 to $1,531.50 an ounce.

Semiconductor and oil service stocks also saw some strength on the day, while transportation and healthcare stocks moved to the downside.

Other Markets

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance on Monday, with the Japanese markets closed for a holiday. China's Shanghai Composite Index tumbled by 1 percent, while Australia's S&P/ASX 200 Index rose by 0.3 percent.

Meanwhile, the major European markets all moved to the downside on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index dipped by 0.3 percent, the German DAX Index and the French CAC 40 Index slumped by 1 percent and 1.1 percent, respectively.

In the bond, treasuries moved notably higher, extending the strong upward move seen last week. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, slid 4.7 basis points to 1.708 percent.

Looking Ahead

Trading on Tuesday may be impacted by reaction to the Conference Board's report on consumer confidence in the month of September.