Stocks continue to show a lack of direction in late morning trading on Tuesday, as traders look ahead to monetary policy decisions from both sides of the Atlantic. The major averages are showing only modest moves after ending the previous session just below the unchanged line.
The lackluster performance on Wall Street comes as traders seem reluctant to make any significant moves ahead of monetary policy announcements from the Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively.
Meanwhile, traders have largely shrugged off a batch of relatively upbeat U.S. economic data, including reports showing an unexpected improvement in consumer confidence and an acceleration in the pace of growth in Chicago-area business activity.
Most of the major sectors are showing only modest moves, although semiconductor stocks have shown a strong move to the upside. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index has advanced by 1.9 percent, with Cirrus Logic (CRUS) posting a standout gain after providing upbeat guidance.
Steel, networking, and telecom stocks have also moved notably higher on the day, while weakness is visible among health insurance, electronic storage, and brokerage stocks.
The major averages currently continue to turn in a mixed performance, with the Nasdaq up 7.77 points or 0.3 percent at 2,953.61, while the Dow is down 11.54 points or 0.1 percent at 13,061.47 and the S&P 500 is down 0.20 points or less than a tenth of a percent at 1,385.10.
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