The Basic Materials sector (XLB) showed little movement on a trading day that saw S&P 500 fall 1.5%.

As a proxy for the sector, the ETF tracked closer to the overall market today than over the past month. Entering today's trading, XLB was down 10.1% over the last thirty trading days. The S&P 500, in comparison, went up -5.6%.

Extorre Gold Mines (XG) was a significant gainer in the sector, rising 15.2%. The stock closed at $2.58 with 424,816 shares moving. The stock traded in a range of $2.31 to $2.78. Agnico-Eagle Mines (AEM) also gained today, climbing $1.84 (+5.4%) to close at $35.87.

Trex Company (TREX) was a major loser in the sector. Its price dropped 8.6% (-$2.49) to close at $26.36, as 342,784 shares moved. The stock traded between $26.13 and $29.21. The stock has been losing steam over the last month, declining $4.95 (-15.8%) from a price of $31.31 on April 18, 2012.

Banro Corporation (BAA) rose 9.6% to close at $3.76, approaching its 50-day moving average of $4.11. It has also moved closer to its 200-day moving average of $4.36. Airgas (ARG) fell 6.3% to close at $83.62, moving down to 2.5% above its 200-day moving average of $81.53.