Stocks Were Mixed Last Week

Tech shares, particularly artificial intelligence (AI) stocks, helped push the Nasdaq, and, to a much lesser extent, the S&P 500 higher last week. The Dow, the Russell 2000 and the Global Dow declined. During a week when volume was relatively light, investors latched onto favorable corporate earnings data from some major tech and AI companies. Among the market sectors, only information technology and communication services closed higher. Real estate and energy declined the most. Treasury yields inched higher, while crude oil prices fell 2.74%, yet remain up 9.1% year to date. Gold prices, which had been soaring, had their worst week in a while, although they are up nearly 13.0% from the beginning of the year.

Existing and New Home Sales Decreased in April

April saw sales of existing homes decrease 1.9% from the prior month’s estimate. Existing home sales are down 1.9% from April 2023. Total inventory sits at a 3.5-month supply, up from 3.2 months in March. The median existing home price in April was $407,600 ($392,900 in March), an increase of 5.7% from the previous year ($385,800).

Sales of new single-family houses in April were 4.7% below the March rate and 7.7% under the April 2023 estimate. The median price for new houses sold in April was $433,500 ($439,500 in March). The average sales price was $505,700 ($527,400 in March). The number of houses for sale in April represented a 9.1-month supply at the current sales pace.

Eye on the Week Ahead

There are some important economic reports released during the holiday-shortened week. The second estimate of gross domestic product for the first quarter is out this week. The initial estimate showed economic growth slowed to an annual rate of 1.6%. Also available this week is the latest report on personal income and outlays. The previous report showed consumer spending rose 0.8% in March, while consumer prices advanced 0.3%.