US Stock Market Overview – Stocks Close Mixed but Finish the Week in the Black

US Stocks were mixed on Friday, but the large-cap S&P 500 index finished the week in the black, rising approximately 2%. Most sectors in the S&P 500 index were lower, led down by energy shares. The slow rollout of the vaccine around the globe has started to weigh on this sector. Consumer staples bucked the trend. The House of Representatives is expected to send over its impeachment article to the Senate on Monday, soon beginning its trial against former President Donald Trump. U.S. Existing Home Sales hit a 14-year high rising 22% year over year. Intel reported softer than expected earnings after the closing bell on Thursday, which weighed on the Dow Industrial Average. The U.S. flash PMI came in stronger than expected, signaling a sharp rebound in business activity. Crude oil prices moved lower on Friday, which weighed on the energy sector, but oil prices only finished down 0.1% for the week. The dollar moved lower, helping gold prices gain traction, allowing the yellow metal to rise 1.5% for the week.

Existing Home Sales Surge

Sales of previously owned homes rose to a 14-year high, according to the National Association of Realtors. Existing-home sales rose 0.7% in December from November to an annual rate of 6.76 million. The December sales marked a 22% increase from a year earlier. Existing-home sales totaled 5.64 million in 2020, up 5.6% from 2019 and the highest level since the 2006 pace of 6.48 million.

U.S. Flash Composite PMI rose to 58.0 in January from 55.3 in December, signaling a rebound in business activity, despite supply chain disruption. Factory production rose at the quickest pace for 77-months, with services also seeing a more robust upturn.