The major US stock indexes closed out the shortened trading week mixed Friday, with the blue chip Dow Jones index losing ground as the technology-laden Nasdaq index notched up gains.
In the week to Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average blue chip index fell 2.21 percent to 12,280.17.
The broad-market Standard and Poor's 500 lost 0.02 percent to 1,400.95 while the tech-weighted Nasdaq climbed 0.46 percent to 2,460.26.
Traders said they were not surprised the Dow gave up some gains as the markets were shut Thursday for the Thanksgiving public holiday and only traded half a day Friday.
They said the stock indexes still remain at robust levels, especially the Dow which has chalked up a series of record closing highs in recent weeks.
Analysts said they were eager to see what consumer demand would be like Friday as the critical pre-Christmas shopping season kicked off.
Many large department stores opened around dawn across the country Friday as retailers launched big Thanksgiving holiday sales in a bid to lure consumers to part with cash for discounted electronics, clothing and furniture.
Analysts track the retail sector closely as consumer spending accounts for some two-thirds of all US economic activity.
"The biggest news is going to be those Friday sales," said Marc Pado, an analyst at Cantor Fitzgerald.
"Even though there is a lot of economic news this week, I think the performance in terms of retail sales over the weekend is going to probably be the highlight for the early part of the (coming) week," Pado said.
Other market-watchers agreed that investors would be focused on the weekend sales figures this week.
"Traders will be anticipating the outcome of 'Black Friday' and 'Cyber-Monday,' typically the heaviest shopping days of the year," said Frederic Dickson, a senior strategist for D.A. Davidson and Co, referring to Friday's sales events and Monday when many consumers are expected to make online purchases.
Analysts said they will be tracking the retail sales figures closely because the US economy has cooled markedly this year on the back of a housing slowdown, record oil prices and higher interest rates.
However, oil prices have fallen sharply from summer highs in recent months and the Federal Reserve has kept interest rates on hold since August.
The coming week will seek a slew of announcements on the economy that will likely drive trading.
Fresh updates on existing and new homes sales, consumer sentiment, personal income and spending and auto sales are all due to be released through the week, as well as reports on construction spending and a preliminary reading for third-quarter gross domestic product (GDP).
Most analysts expect new home sales in October to moderate to 1.045 million units, compared with 1.075 million in September as the housing downturn continues.
Existing homes sales, however, are expected to rise to 6.20 million units in October, compared with 6.18 million in the prior month, according to most economists.
Auto sales by the big manufacturers across the country are forecast to rise to 5.2 million units in November from 5.1 million in the prior month.
Personal spending is expected to remain steady, with a predicted rise of 0.1 percent in October compared with September, according to most economists' estimates.
And the government's preliminary GDP reading is anticipated to be revised higher to 1.8 percent, from an initial reading of 1.6 percent.
Bond prices rose over the week. The yield on the 10-year Treasury bond fell to 4.548 percent from 4.607 percent a week earlier, while that on the 30-year bond fell marginally to 4.629 percent against 4.691 percent. Bond yields and prices move in opposite directions.
Comments
Comments are closed.