India, Feb. 18 -- Stocks showed a lack of direction throughout much of the trading session on Tuesday, extending the lackluster performance seen during last Friday's session. The major averages moved to the upside going into end the day, however, with the S&P 500 reaching a new record closing high.
The major averages all posted modest gains on the day. The S&P 500 rose 14.95 points or 0.2 percent to 6,129.58, the Nasdaq inched up 14.49 points or 0.1 percent to 20,041.26 and the Dow crept up 10.26 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 44,556.34.
The choppy trading on Wall Street came as some traders remained on the sidelines following the Presidents' Day holiday on Monday.
Traders may also have been expressing some uncertainty about...