US markets end lower on weak construction data

05 Mar 2019 Evaluate

The US markets ended lower on Monday after a report released by the Commerce Department unexpectedly showed a pullback in US construction spending in the month of December. The report said construction spending fell by 0.6% to an annual rate of $1.293 trillion in December after climbing by 0.8% to a rate of $1.301 trillion in November. The drop surprised participants, who had expected spending to edge up by 0.2%. The unexpected decrease came as spending on private construction slid by 0.6% to an annual rate of $991.2 billion after surging up by 1.3% to a rate of $997.1 billion in November. Spending on residential construction tumbled by 1.4% to a rate of $536.7 billion, more than offsetting a 0.4% increase in spending on non-residential construction to a rate of $454.5 billion. The Commerce Department said spending on public construction also dropped by 0.6% to an annual rate of $301.5 billion in December after tumbling by 1% to a rate of $303.5 billion in November.

However, downside remained capped after private report said the US and China are in the final stage of negotiations on a long-term trade deal. A major trade deal between the US and China would likely provide a major boost to the global economy and remove significant uncertainty recently hanging over the markets. further, report said China is offering to lower tariffs and other restrictions on American products, while the US is considering removing most, if not all, sanctions levied against Chinese products since last year. Report also said President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are planning to meet later this month to finalize the agreement.

Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 206.67 points or 0.79 percent to 25819.65, S&P 500 declined 10.88 points or 0.39 percent to 2792.81 and Nasdaq was down by 17.79 points or 0.23 percent to 7577.57.

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