The Federal Reserve was top of mind for investors Monday, with the central bank's next policy decision - a likely 75 basis-point rate hike - due out Wednesday. This led to back-and-forth trading for much of the session, though the major market indexes ultimately ended in positive territory today.
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While the economic calendar is relatively thin over the next few days, Wall Street will see a round of housing data in the leadup to the Fed announcement. Today, that was the release of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo housing market index, which showed builder confidence fell 3 points in September to 46, its lowest level since spring 2020. This was the ninth straight monthly drop in the index, and came amid a "combination of elevated interest rates, persistent building material supply-chain disruptions and high home prices [that] continue to take a toll on affordability," the report stated.
"We expect the other housing market releases this week (housing starts, existing home sales and building permits) will show similar weakness," says Raymond James economist Giampiero Fuentes. "Bad news continues to be good news for the Fed, as it indicates its tightening cycle is working to slow demand."
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In terms of sector performance, materials stocks ( 1.7%) were the leaders. Healthcare (-0.5%), meanwhile, lagged as COVID-19 vaccine makers like Pfizer (PFE, -1.3%) and Moderna (
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