It was a day with violent swings in the market, but it was a day where when all was said and done, there was little change. The Dow rose by as much as 84 points in the early morning hours, only to see the late morning hours bring a huge wave of selling. By about 10:40 am the Dow was down about 70 points. The rest of the day the Dow swung between positive and negative before ending up by 27 points. The Nasdaq was a little weaker overall for the day, and it finished lower by 5 points. The S&P 500 gained 4.55, or 0.32%. 
Today's trading had some major sector losers and some major sector winners, as trading was very split today.
One of the big losers was the capital goods sector. Boeing (NYSE:BA) fell 3.44% on heavy volume as the aerospace and defense area showed weakness. Probably the most notable group of weakness inside the capital goods area though was the infrastructure stocks. These stocks have been very hot of late and have been sitting at or near 52 week highs, but today was not a good day for them. Foster Wheeler (Nasdaq:FWLT) plunged 6.11% on more than double its average daily volume. Jacobs Engineering Group (NYSE:JEC) lost 5.52% and The Shaw Group (NYSE:SGR) fell 5.34%, both on strong volume. Construction stocks also fell, with Terex Corporation (NYSE:TEX) losing 6.25% to lead the way lower.
Technology stocks were also a big loser in today's trading. VMware (NYSE:VMW) shares plunged 9.32% on fairly heavy volume, while its parent company EMC (NYSE:EMC) lost 5.65%. NVIDIA Corporation (Nasdaq:NVDA) shares sank 10.33% on very heavy volume and no apparent news. MEMC Electronic Materials (NYSE:WFR) lost 7.31% as this stock has dropped a quick 20% in the past couple of weeks. Sunpower Corporation (Nasdaq:SPWR) also lost 6.62% as the solar play showed some significant weakness today.
The real standout today was the healthcare sector. The sector showed a lot of strength all day, presumably because they are seen as a nice safe haven for investors in a troubled economic period. Eli Lilly (NYSE:LLY) shares jumped an almost unheard of 5.31% after an analyst upgrade today. Glaxosmithkline (NYSE:GSK) shares jumped 4.89% on very strong volume. Sanofi-Aventis (NYSE:SNY) charged higher by 3.59%. Zimmer Holdings (NYSE:ZMH) in the equipment and supplies group gained 3.25% today.
The other group that was notably strong today was the consumer-non cyclical sector. Once again this is likely because they are the type of companies that will grow consistently no matter the economic environment. The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) shares gained 2.36% on heavier than normal volume. It's competitor, Pepsico (NYSE:PEP) shares rose by 2.34% on the day. Anheuser-Busch (NYSE:BUD) shares jumped 4.74% after it reported better than expected growth.
Today was the type of trading day you will get pretty often when there is such a battle between those who believe stocks are oversold and those who rushing for the exits because of the economic worries. Volatility will likely stay very high in the coming days and weeks, and traders are likely to be on the edge, meaning the markets will be prone to quick movements.
I think that right now is probably a good time to stay on the sidelines if you have some cash. Let the current situation play itself out before committing any capital. Keep a close eye on the economic data, especially the employment picture, since it will likely be your best tip as to which direction this market will go.
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