WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - After showing a lack of direction early in the session, stocks have moved mostly lower over the course of the trading day on Tuesday. The major averages have all slid firmly into negative territory after initially bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line.
Currently, the major averages are off their worst levels of the day but still in the red. The Dow is down 219.93 points or 0.7 percent at 33,381.22, the Nasdaq is down 61.37 points or 0.5 percent at 12,128.08 and the S&P 500 is down 23.16 points or 0.6 percent at 4,101.35.
The weakness that has emerged on Wall Street may partly reflect profit taking following recent strength in the markets.
The Dow and the S&P 500 closed higher for the fourth straight session on Monday, reaching their best closing levels in over a month, while the Nasdaq is just off the six-month closing high set last Friday.
Negative sentiment may also have been generated by a Labor Department report showing job openings in the U.S. decreased by more than expected in the month of February.
The report said job openings fell to 9.9 million in February from a revised 10.6 million in January. Economists had expected job openings to decline to 10.4 million from the 10.8 million originally reported for the previous month.
'February's JOLTS report is an indication that the softening in the labor market may be gaining some momentum,' said Matthew Martin, U.S. Economist at Oxford Economics.
He added, 'To be sure, job openings remain highly elevated, but February's level is the first month below 10k since June 2021 and suggests businesses are becoming more wary about additional headcount.
A separate report released by the Commerce Department showed new orders for U.S. manufactured goods fell by more than expected in the month of February.
Traders may also be looking ahead to the release of the Labor Department's closely watched monthly jobs report on Friday.
Economists currently expect the report to show employment increased by 240,000 jobs in March after climbing by 311,000 jobs in February. The unemployment rate is expected to hold at 3.6 percent.
While the markets will be closed for Good Friday when the report is released, the data could still impact the outlook for interest rates and the economy.
Sector News
Steel stocks have shown a substantial pullback on the day, with the NYSE Arca Steel Index plunging by 3.8 percent after closing higher for eight straight sessions.
Considerable weakness has also emerged among energy stocks, which are giving back ground after soaring on Monday along with the price of crude oil.
With crude for May delivery slipping $0.26 to $80.16 a barrel, the Philadelphia Oil Service Index is down by 3.5 percent and the NYSE Arca Oil Index is down by 2.8 percent.
Banking stocks have also shown a significant move to the downside over the course of the session, dragging the KBW Bank Index down by 2.5 percent.
Transportation, housing and brokerage stocks are also seeing notable weakness, while gold stocks are bucking the downtrend amid a sharp increase by the price of the precious metal.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Tuesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index rose by 0.4 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index climbed by 0.5 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets turned in a mixed performance on the day. While the German DAX Index inched up by 0.1 percent, the French CAC 40 Index closed nearly unchanged and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index fell by 0.5 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries have moved sharply lower over the course of the session after seeing initial weakness. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is down by 8.8 basis points at 3.342 percent.
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