On Wednesday, US equity indexes experienced a mixed performance as investors evaluated new housing market data amidst a notable increase in gold prices, which reached a fresh record high during intraday trading. The S&P 500 saw a slight decrease of less than 0.1%, landing at 5,729.2, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped by 0.5% to 41,987.6, having previously hit new peaks earlier in the trading session.
Conversely, the Nasdaq Composite recorded a marginal gain of less than 0.1%, closing at 18,079.8. Notably, technology stocks led the market gains, while the healthcare and energy sectors faced significant declines. In economic developments, mortgage applications experienced a remarkable surge of 11% for the week ending on September 20, reaching their highest levels since July 2022.
This increase was primarily driven by the eighth consecutive weekly drop in mortgage rates, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association released on Wednesday. Notably, applications for refinancing loans soared by 20% compared to the previous week, while new purchase applications witnessed a seasonally adjusted rise of 1%. Simultaneously, new home sales in the US fell to a 716,000 annual rate in August, down from an upwardly revised 751,000 in July.
This data fell below the 700,000 annual rate anticipated in a Bloomberg survey. However, it’s important to note that home sales remained up 9.8% from the same time last year. The inventory of homes available for sale also saw an increase of 1.7%, amounting to 467,000 units, which is a 9.1% rise compared to the previous year. In the bond market, most US Treasury yields experienced an uptick, with the 10-year yield advancing by 3.7 basis points to reach 3.77%.
The two-year treasury rate increased by 2.5 basis points, settling at 3.55%. Gold prices rose by 0.2%, reaching $2,683 per ounce, after briefly hitting an intraday high of $2,694.8999. In contrast, silver prices decreased by 0.7%, closing at $32.2. On the commodity front, West Texas Intermediate crude oil prices fell by 1.9%, priced at $70.12 per barrel. In corporate developments, Barclays upgraded its rating on Hewlett Packard Enterprise, changing it from equal-weight to overweight.
The investment bank also adjusted its price target for the company to $24, up from the previous target of $20. Following the upgrade, shares of this technology giant surged by 5% intraday, making it the leading performer on the S&P 500..