US stocks end in the red

Indices held on to their first weekly gains of the month

US stocks ended mostly lower in a choppy Friday session on 28 December 2018 but held on to their first weekly gains of the month in a turbulent holiday environment marked by wild swings between gains and losses. Stocks flipped between moderate gains and losses over the course of the session but saw a late push to the upside fizzle.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average settled 76.42 points lower at 23,062.40, a loss of 0.3%, while the S&P 500 finished at 2,485.74, a decline of 3.09 points, or 0.1%. The Nasdaq Composite rose 5.03 points, or 0.1%, to 6,584.52. For the week, the S&P 500 logged a 2.9% rise, while the Dow rose 2.8% and the Nasdaq rallied 4%. It was the first weekly gain for all three indexes since the end of November.

The S&P 500 sectors finished mixed with energy and materials underperforming the broader market. Conversely, the consumer discretionary and real estate sectors outperformed.

A still-unresolved government shutdown remains as an overhang for stocks, as do concerns about the economy and the next round of company earnings. Investors should see some clarity in the new year, either positive or negative, as the fourth-quarter earnings season gets under way in mid-January and market participants look ahead to a late-January Federal Reserve meeting that should offer further clarity on the central bank's policy intentions.

Economic data at Wall Street showed that pending Home Sales decreased 0.7% in November. The reading follows an unrevised 2.6% decrease in October. The MNI Chicago Business Barometer, colloquially known as the Chicago PMI, decreased to 65.4 in December from 66.4 in November. The December pullback took place after the Index soared by nearly eight points in November.The key takeaway from the report is that the overall reading remained elevated thanks to strong order backlogs and an increase in the Production Index.

A leading U.S. dollar index eased 0.3% to 96.22 on Friday.

Bullion prices ended higher on Friday, 28 Dec 2018 at Comex. Gold futures closed slightly higher on Friday after a mixed session, leaving the haven metal at roughly six-month highs and up 1.8% for the week.

Gold for February delivery on Comex rose $1.90, or 0.1%, at $1,283 an ounce. The contract's higher finish is its fourth in a row and marked the highest settlement since the third week of June 2018. March silver traded up 7 cents, or 0.5%, at $15.385 an ounce. It's up nearly 4.7% for the week.

U.S. oil futures settled sharply higher on Friday, 28 December 2018 after government inventory data showed a smaller-than-expected fall in crude inventories, but contrasted with unofficial figures that had showed a massive supply build, sparking a relief rally.

West Texas Intermediate crude for February delivery rose 72 cents, or 1.6%, to end at $45.33 a barrel, after the contract dropped 3.5% to $44.61 a barrel on Thursday. The global benchmark, February Brent crude edged up 4 cents, or less than 0.1%, to finish at $52.20 a barrel. Brent slid, 4.2% to settle at $52.16 a barrel on the ICE Europe platform on Thursday. For the week, WTI finished with a decline of 0.6%, while Brent booked a weekly fall of 3%. Both grades logged their third consecutive weekly losses.

The Energy Information Administration reported Friday that domestic crude supplies fell by 46,000 barrels for the week ended Dec. 21. Gasoline stockpiles rose by 3 million barrels last week, while distillate stockpiles were virtually unchanged. Meanwhile, a separate report from EIA showed that domestic supplies of natural gas fell by 48 billion cubic feet for the week ended Dec. 21. Total stocks now stand at 2.725 trillion cubic feet, down 623 billion cubic feet from a year ago, and 647 billion below the five-year average. The EIA reports were delayed because due to the Christmas Day holiday on Tuesday.

Investors will not receive any notable economic data on Monday, which will be a full day of trading on Wall Street.

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