A look at highlights from the day's business news headlines:
Stocks take early vacation, end flat U.S. stocks ended a strong week on a quiet note Thursday, as mixed economic data kept investors from jumping in ahead of a long holiday weekend.
The Dow Jones industrial average edged up 14 points, or 0.1%; the S&P 500 fell 2 points, or 0.2%; and the Nasdaq slipped 6 points, or 0.2%. The three major indexes were about 1% higher for the week.
On Wednesday, stocks ended at fresh two-year highs as oil prices topped $90 a barrel.
Reports Thursday showed jobless claims barely budging, new home sales rising slightly and personal income and spending ticking higher.
But Wall Street was relatively unfazed by the data, with stocks hovering near the break-even point for most of the session. Many investors have already left their desks for the holidays, and U.S. markets will be closed Friday for the holiday weekend.
Treasury prices fall after economic data dump
Treasury prices drifted lower Thursday as the holiday-shortened trading week was capped by a wave of economic reports.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year note increased to 3.39%. The 30-year bond yield ticked up to 4.47%. Meanwhile, the yield on the 2-year note increased to 0.66%, and the 5-year note pushed up to 2.05%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Before the opening bell, the Commerce Department reported that personal income rose 0.3% and personal spending rose 0.4% in November. The results were mixed, compared to expectations.
Meanwhile, the Department of Labor announced that initial jobless claims fell 3,000 to 420,000 in the week ended Dec. 18. Claims were expected to have edged up to 424,000.
Slightly worse than expected reports on durable goods orders and new home sales added to what investors had to sort through.
– CNNMoney.com reporters Blake Ellis and Charles Riley contributed to this report.
No comments:
Post a Comment