Oil Swings and Higher Treasury Yields Weigh on Equities 

Despite a broad-based rally last Friday, stocks generally closed the week lower. With the exception of the Global Dow, each of the benchmark indexes ended last week in the red. Ongoing tensions in the Middle East have wreaked havoc with crude oil prices, which jumped to over $100/barrel last Thursday, only to plunge to about $90/barrel by the end of the week. Ten-year Treasury yields jumped to their highest levels since January 2025 following a four-session rally before settling at 4.67%. Energy, Industrials, Information Technology, Utilities, Health Care and Materials outperformed, while Consumer Discretionary, Consumer Staples and Communication Services declined. 

June New Home Sales Improve Modestly Amid Softer Pricing 

Sales of new single-family houses in June were 1.6% above the May rate but 5.6% below the June 2025 estimate. Inventory of new single-family homes for sale in June represented a supply of 9.3 months at the current sales rate, which was 1.1% below the May 2026 estimate but 3.3% above the June 2025 figure. The median sales price of new houses sold in June was $398,300. This was 3.3% below the May price of $412,000, and 2.7% under the June 2025 price of $409,200. The average sales price of new houses sold in June was $475,400. This was 9.5% below the May price of $525,200 and 6.5% under the June 2025 price of $508,700. 

Eye on the Week Ahead 

There’s plenty of market-moving economic data being released this week. The Federal Reserve concludes its meeting on Wednesday, and it’s expected to leave interest rates in their current target range. The report on gross domestic product for the second quarter is available, as is the June data on consumer prices.