WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Stocks fluctuated over the course of the trading session on Tuesday before eventually ending the day modestly higher. The major averages all finished the day in positive territory following the mixed performance seen on Monday.
The Dow climbed 140.26 points or 0.4 percent to 38,711.29, the Nasdaq rose 28.38 points or 0.2 percent to 16,857.05 and the S&P 500 edged up 7.94 points or 0.2 percent to 5,291.34.
The higher close by the major averages came amid a notable decrease by treasury yields, which extended the sharp pullback seen over the past few sessions.
The yield on the benchmark ten-year note closed lower for the fourth straight session, pulling back further off the nearly one-month closing high set last Wednesday.
The continued advance by treasuries came amid signs of weakness in the labor market, with a report from the Labor Department showing a modest decrease in U.S. job openings in the month of April.
The Labor Department said job openings fell to 8.059 million in April from a downwardly revised 8.355 million in March.
Economists had expected job openings to dip to 8.340 million from the 8.488 million originally reported for the previous month.
Bond traders are seemingly optimistic that the weakness in the labor market will encourage the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates in the coming months.
On Friday, the Labor Department is scheduled to release its more closely watched monthly jobs report, which could have a significant impact on the outlook for the economy and interest rates.
Economists currently expect the report to show employment jumped by 190,000 jobs in May after climbing by 175,000 jobs in April, while the unemployment rate is expected to hold at 3.9 percent.
Sector News
Despite the modest gains posted by the major averages, gold stocks moved sharply lower on the day, dragging the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index down by 4.2 percent. The sell-off by gold stocks came amid a notable decrease by the price of the precious metal.
Significant weakness was also visible among steel stocks, as reflected by the 3.3 percent slump by the NYSE Arca Steel Index.
Energy stocks also saw considerable weakness, as the price of crude oil saw further downside after OPEC+ announced plans to increase production starting in October.
Housing, financial and networking stocks also showed notable moves to the downside, while telecom, pharmaceutical and commercial real estate stocks saw some strength on the day.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance during trading on Tuesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index dipped by 0.2 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index rose by 0.4 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets all moved to the downside on the day. While the German DAX Index slumped by 1.1 percent, the French CAC 40 Index slid by 0.8 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index fell by 0.4 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries extended the strong upward move seen over the past few sessions. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, slid 6.6 basis points to a one-month closing low of 4.336 percent.
Looking Ahead
Trading on Wednesday may be impacted by reaction to reports on private sector employment and service sector activity in the month of May.
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