Stock markets slide in choppy day of trading

Stocks closed broadly lower after a day of choppy trading Monday on Wall Street as investors prepare for a busy week of corporate earnings and inflation updates.

The major indexes made early gains, but slowly fizzled as the day progressed. The S&P 500 fell 30.15 points, or 0.7%, to 4,361.19. The benchmark index gained as much as 0.6% in the early going.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 250.19 points, or 0.7%, to 34,496.06 and the Nasdaq shed 93.34 points, or 0.6%, to 14,486.20.

Technology and communications stocks had some of the biggest losses. Facebook fell 1.4% and Intuit fell 1.1%.

Most sectors ended in the red. Real estate stocks, which are seen as relatively less risky, were among the few bright spots within the S&P 500.

Bond trading was closed for the Columbus Day holiday. The price of U.S. crude oil rose 1.5% to over $80 a barrel.

Investors are looking ahead to the beginning of company earnings this week. Analysts have said that the latest round of corporate results could help give the market more direction after several choppy weeks. Stocks have been swaying between between gains and losses as investors try to better gauge the direction of the economic recovery through the rest of the year.

Banks will be among the first big companies to report their latest financial results and give investors more insight into how companies are faring amid concerns over the lingering virus pandemic and rising inflation.

JPMorgan Chase delivers its results on Wednesday. Bank of America, Wells Fargo and Citigroup will report results on Thursday.

Delta Air Lines will report its latest results on Wednesday. The airline industry is still struggling to recover from the pandemic shutdowns that began 18 months ago. Investors will be closely monitoring the industry’s results to see how much of an impact the summer surge of COVID-19 cases had on the industry.

Toymaker Hasbro fell 1.6% after announcing that CEO Brian D. Goldner is taking a medical leave of absence.