YAHOO [BRIEFING.COM]: Participants sent all 10 major sectors in the S&P 500 into the red following the release of the June Consumer Confidence Index, which came in at 49.3 to miss expectations and mark a decline from the previous reading. Meanwhile, the Expectations Index also missed the consensus estimate and declined from the previous reading.

Materials stocks were among the hardest hit sectors this session. They shed 1.3% as steel stocks (-1.8%) showed weakness after Schnitzer Steel (SCHN 52.86, -7.35) reported some disappointing quarterly earnings results and other basic commodities prices were weakened by a stronger dollar. The greenback's 0.4% gain helped send gold prices 1.4% lower to $927.20 per ounce and oil prices down 2.3% to $68.90 per barrel. Still, both the CRB Commodity Index and the materials sector gained roughly 16% during the second quarter.

Financials saw the best gains of any major sector during the second quarter. The sector shrugged off today's 1.1% loss to finish the quarter with a 44% gain.

Leadership from the financial sector helped the S&P 500 post a second quarter gain of nearly 17%, which marks a rebound from the first quarter's near 12% decline and the near 24% drop registered in the fourth quarter of 2008. Still, the second quarter rebound is the best quarterly performance since the fourth quarter of 1998.

Such strong gains have many market watchers calling for a pullback in stock prices. However, such consolidation could also be accomplished with stocks moving sideways for an extended period of time. To that point, the S&P 500 finished June flat; or up just one-fifth of a point, to be exact. DJ30 -82.38 NASDAQ -9.02 NQ100 -0.4% R2K -0.5% SP400 -0.4% SP500 -7.91 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1155/2.10 bln/1517 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1279/1.33 bln/1690