Stocks Finish in the Black
Author: Kristina Peterson</br></br>Stocks ended the session slightly higher, as investors await bellwether earnings reports due in coming days.</br></br>The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 3.63 points, or 0.03%, to 11010.11. The Nasdaq Composite edged up 0.42 point, or 0.02%, to 2402.33, while the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index rose 0.15 point, or 0.01%, to 1165.30.</br></br>Monday's trading came on lighter-than-average volume, with just over three billion shares changing hands in New York Stock Exchange composite trading compared with the daily average of about four billion. Bond markets and federal offices were closed in the U.S. for the Columbus Day holiday.</br></br>"More than anything, it's just a holiday-type trade, with low volume kind of whipsawing around," said Jamie Cox, managing partner at Harris Financial Group.