Stocks closed higher last week, despite a few shaky days. The major benchmark stock indexes posted gains, led by the Russell 2000 and the Dow. Consumer discretionary stocks outperformed along with energy, financials, materials, and industrials. Investor sentiment improved following favorable inflation data and solid earnings from major banks. Crude oil prices increased for the fourth straight week, primarily driven by concerns of new U.S. sanctions against Russian oil producers, which raised worries of tighter global oil supplies. The dollar index declined, snapping a six-week rally.
Last Week’s Economic News
- The Consumer Price Index (CPI) increased in December, in line with expectations.
- Prices at the producer level rose a less-than-expected 0.2% in December. Producer prices rose 0.4% in November. Producer prices rose 3.3% in 2024 after increasing 1.1% in 2023.
- Retail sales rose in December and were up 3.9% since December 2023. Year to date, retail sales were up 3.0%.
- Import prices ticked up in December for the third straight month. Import prices advanced 2.2% over the past 12 months, the largest 12-month increase since the period ended December 2022.
- Industrial production (IP) increased in December after moving up in November.
- The U.S. Treasury budget deficit was $86.7 billion in December, well below the November deficit of $366.8 billion and under the December 2023 deficit of $129.4 billion.
- The housing sector saw a dip in new home construction in December.
- The national average retail price for regular gasoline was $3.043 per gallon on January 13.
- For the week ended January 11, there were 217,000 new claims for unemployment insurance, an increase of 14,000 from the previous week’s level.
Eye on the Week Ahead
The holiday-shortened week includes one economic report of note: the December data on sales of existing homes. November saw sales increase 4.8% for the month and 2.6% over the last 12 months.
Have a nice week!
Sincerely,
Robert G. Carpenter