Stocks saw considerable volatility over the course of the trading day on Wednesday as traders digested news of the Federal Reserve's decision to extend "Operation Twist." Nonetheless, the markets largely held on to their recent gains.
While most of the major sectors ended the day showing only modest moves, significant weakness was visible among trucking stocks. The Dow Jones Trucking Index fell by 1.3 percent after ending the previous session at its best closing level in well over a month.
Utilities stocks also came under pressure on the day, dragging the Dow Jones Utilities Average down by 1.2 percent. Gold, natural gas, and railroad stocks also saw moderate weakness.
Meanwhile, airline stocks moved sharply higher over the course of the trading day, driving the NYSE Arca Airline Index up by 1.8 percent. With the gain, the index ended the session at its best closing level in four months.
Semiconductor, computer hardware, and networking stocks also saw some strength on the day, contributing to the slightly higher close by the tech-heavy Nasdaq.
The major averages bounced back and forth across the unchanged line before eventually ending the session mixed.
While the Nasdaq crept up 0.69 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 2,930.45, the Dow edged down 12.94 points or 0.1 percent to 12,824.39 and the S&P 500 slipped 2.29 points or 0.2 percent to 1,355.69.
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