US markets end mostly lower on Wednesday

27 Feb 2020 Evaluate

The US markets ended mostly lower on Wednesday as the rapid spread of COVID-19 infections and deaths outside of China continued to hang over markets. Dozens of American and European companies have now warned of the epidemic’s impact on their supply lines and earnings, including Microsoft which lowered its earnings guidance after the market closed Wednesday. Traders shrugged off a Commerce Department report showing new home sales jumped to their highest level in over twelve years in the month of January. The report said new home sales spiked by 7.9 percent to an annual rate of 764,000 in January after jumping by 2.3 percent to an upwardly revised rate of 708,000 in December. Street had expected new home sales to surge up by 2.3 percent to an annual rate of 710,000 from the 694,000 originally reported for the previous month.

With the much bigger than expected increase, new home sales reached their highest annual rate since hitting 778,000 in July of 2007. The jump in new home sales came as sales in the Midwest and West soared by 30.3 percent and 23.5 percent, respectively. New home sales in the Northeast also shot up by 4.8 percent, while new home sales in the South tumbled by 4.4 percent. The Commerce Department also said the median sales price of new houses sold was a record high $348,200 in January, up 7.4 percent from $324,100 in December and up 14 percent from $305,400 in the same month a year ago.

Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 123.77 or 0.46 percent points 26,957.59 and S&P 500 was down by 11.82 points or 0.38 percent to 3,116.39. Nasdaq gained 15.16 points or 0.17 percent to 8,980.78.

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