US benchmark equity indexes closed with mixed results on Wednesday as the financial markets reacted to a recent report indicating a decrease in new single-family houses for January. The Nasdaq Composite managed a slight gain of 0.02%, landing at 19,030.5 points, while the S&P 500 experienced a marginal decline of 0.1%, settling at 5,950.3.
Conversely, the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed by 0.4%, reaching 43,433.7 points. Within the sectors, consumer staples faced the most significant declines, while technology stocks led the upward momentum. In the bond markets, US Treasury yields dipped, with the 10-year rate decreasing by approximately 0.05 basis points to 4.25%.
The two-year rate remained relatively stable at 4.08%. On the commodities front, West Texas Intermediate crude oil prices were down 0.2%, settling at $68.79 per barrel on Wednesday. From an economic perspective, new home sales in the US dropped to an annualized rate of 657,000 in January, down from an upwardly revised December figure of 734,000.
This figure fell short of the forecasted 664,000 for January 2024, which was detailed in a collaborative report by the US Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Moreover, mortgage applications saw a decrease of 1.2% in the week concluding last Friday. This decline can be attributed to soaring housing prices which offset a slight reduction in mortgage rates, as reported by data from the Mortgage Bankers Association. In corporate developments, Advance Auto Parts ($AAP) experienced a substantial drop of 18% following an announcement that the company’s Q4 loss expanded year-over-year, coinciding with a decrease in revenue. On the other hand, ZoomInfo Technologies ($ZI) saw an impressive increase of over 23% after it provided a full-year earnings outlook that exceeded market expectations. Contrasting this, AppLovin ($APP) faced a drop of 12% after short sellers Fuzzy Panda Research and Culper Research made separate allegations against the company. On a positive note for precious metals, gold prices rose by 0.4%, achieving a value of $2,930.2 per troy ounce, while silver increased by 1% to $32.15 per troy ounce..