Stock market today: Dow, S&P 500, Nasdaq edge higher as Bessent dismisses sell-off, retail sales miss

Builders are feeling little assured astir the lodging marketplace arsenic they navigate economical uncertainty, the menace of tariffs, and precocious lodging costs.

The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index fell to 39 successful March, down 3 points from February and the lowest level successful 7 months. According to Bloomberg data, economists were expecting a speechmaking of 42. A speechmaking beneath 50 indicates much builders presumption conditions arsenic mediocre alternatively than good.

“Builders proceed to look elevated gathering worldly costs that are exacerbated by tariff issues, arsenic good arsenic different supply-side challenges that see labour and batch shortages,” NAHB Chairman Buddy Hughes, a homebuilder and developer from Lexington, N.C., said successful a property release.

President Trump past week imposed a 25% tariff connected each imported alloy and aluminum products, without exemptions oregon exceptions, a determination that could rise lodging costs.

“Construction firms are facing added outgo pressures from tariffs,” NAHB main economist Robert Dietz said successful the release.

Dietz noted “Data from the HMI March survey reveals that builders estimation a emblematic outgo effect from caller tariff actions astatine $9,200 per home. Uncertainty connected argumentation is besides having a antagonistic interaction connected location buyers and improvement decisions.”

US stocks were mixed successful aboriginal trading connected Monday aft the merchandise of anemic economical information and up of the Federal Reserve's argumentation gathering this week.

The S&P 500 (^GSPC) traded adjacent the level line, portion the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) was small changed. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) fell slightly.

Weak economical information appeared to nonstop stocks higher implicit expectations of Fed complaint cuts sooner, alternatively than later.

Retail income roseate 0.2% successful February, little than the 0.6% expected, portion January's 0.9% driblet was revised down to 1.2%.

The New York Fed's speechmaking connected manufacturing enactment successful New York authorities showed a crisp pullback this month, with the header concern conditions scale falling to -20 from 5.7 successful February.

All eyes volition beryllium connected the Federal Reserve's gathering this week, though investors expect policymakers to denote they volition clasp rates dependable connected Wednesday afternoon.

National readings connected user and concern assurance person shown signs of weakness arsenic markets descend and Trump's commercialized warfare takes shape, and the determination information isn't overmuch better.

On Monday, the New York Fed's speechmaking connected manufacturing enactment successful New York authorities showed a crisp pullback this month, with the reading's header concern conditions scale falling to -20 from 5.7 successful February.

The scale is calculated by subtracting the percent of respondents reporting little assurance astir conditions from those reporting higher assurance successful the concern outlook.

This speechmaking marks the lowest for the survey since January 2024.

"Manufacturing enactment dropped importantly successful New York State successful March," said Richard Deitz, economical probe advisor astatine the NY Fed. "Input terms increases climbed for a 3rd consecutive period to deed their fastest gait successful much than 2 years. In addition, proviso availability is expected to declaration and firms continued to turn little optimistic astir the aboriginal concern outlook."

The survey was conducted from March 3-11.

Nvidia (NVDA) shares roseate implicit 1% successful premarket, with the kick-off of the chipmaking giant's yearly bundle developer league conscionable hours away.

The stakes are precocious for Nvidia, whose marketplace headdress is nearing $3 trillion acknowledgment to its dominance successful AI — which is nether menace aft DeepSeek upended AI spending hopes with its cheaper chatbot.

The Wall Street Journal reports:

Read much here.

Yahoo Finance's Jennifer Schonberger reports:

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Oil prices person risen for a 2nd consecutive time aft China revealed plans to summation lipid consumption.

Bloomberg reports:

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