DJ30 PointChange: -29.74 Level: 13008.53 NASDAQ PointChange: +1.42 Level: 2957.76 NQ100 PercentChange: +0.1 R2K PercentChange: +0.3 SP400 PercentChange: +0.4 SP500 PointChange: +0.48 Level: 1369.58 NASDAQ-Adv:1372 Dec: 1125 NYSE-Adv:1624 Dec: 1373

[BRIEFING.COM] The broad market spent most of the morning in the red with a narrow loss, but it mustered a modest gain in afternoon trade. Despite its effort, though, the stock market finished flat.

Financials offered leadership for most of the session, but the broad market was generally reluctant to follow. Still, the sector scored a 0.7% gain with help from shares of regional banks, along with diversified financial services players. Multi-line insurers remained weak, however.

Energy stocks were a heavy drag in the early going. The sector's slide to a loss in excess of 1% marked an extension of the downside action that it experienced in the second half of last week. Energy stocks actually overcame the selling pressure to fully reverse the losses and poke into positive territory before easing back to a 0.2% loss. In the backdrop, constant oil futures prices extended their Friday fall by violating a 200-day moving average and setting a 2012 low of a little less than $95.40 per barrel this morning, but prices recovered in afternoon action. The June contract settled with a 0.6% loss at $97.87 per barrel. It is down nearly 8% month to date.

Tech stocks, which collectively represent the largest sector by market weight, were largely lackluster. The sector suffered a 0.3% loss, which may not be very severe, but it stands as the worst showing of any major sector for the session.

The dollar managed to muster a very modest gain of about 0.1% against a basket of major foreign currencies. Its overnight gains were pared as concerns seemed to cool over the implications of a political shakeups in Europe, where polls showed that France has elected a Socialist into power and that members of Greece's parliamentary majority took a drubbing.

Advancing Sectors: Financials +0.7%, Telecom +0.4%, Health Care +0.2%, Consumer Staples +0.1%
Unchanged: Materials, Consumer Discretionary
Declining Sectors: Utilities -0.2%, Energy -0.2%, Industrials -0.2%, Tech -0.3%

Source: Briefing