Volatility Rules the Net Sector

Can you blame investors for not knowing whether to buy or sell in this market? On April 27, the Nasdaq traded as low as 3514. Within a couple of days, it had pushed as high as 3982. Two days later, it was back at 3592.

Granted, volatility like that creates some opportunity, though as our own

James Cramer

has pointed out countless times of late, lack of

liquidity in the market has made it tough for bulls and bears alike. In recent trading,

TheStreet.com Internet Sector

index was up 5.53, or 0.6%, to 874.75. The Nasdaq was down 21.26, or 0.6%, to 3686.05.

Traders remained perplexed about whether to be concerned about an aggressive

Federal Reserve

, or if an aggressive Fed was a

good thing because it was being vigilant and proactive. With so much uncertainty, traders today were likely waiting to see the reaction to tomorrow's

employment report numbers. But as we

reported earlier this week, it's already known that the labor market is tight, setting up the market to rally tomorrow if the numbers are not overly strong or do not suggest that the Fed will go on a protracted tightening.

But even with the employment report out of the way, the market must still contend with the

Federal Reserve Open Market Committee

meeting on May 16, the same day that the

Consumer Price Index

for April will be released. Earlier, an unexpectedly strong March CPI sparked inflation concerns and roiled the stock market.

Internet stocks were mostly mixed, though a number of Internet security firms appeared to be benefiting from the "I Love You" virus that has spread from London to the U.S.

McAfee.com

(MCAF)

was up 4 5/16, or 19.4%, to 26 9/16;

Network Associates

(NETA)

was up 1 3/16,or 5%, to 25 1/4;

Symantec

(SYMC) - Get Report

was up 2 1/2, or 4.3%, to 61; while

Check Point Software

(CHKP) - Get Report

was up 10 1/2, or 6%, to 185 15/16.