The main US stock indexes finished trading in negative territory

Major stock markets in the US recorded a slight decline, as the fall in the shares of the utilities sector and basic resources halted the rally, which had previously led to the Dow Jones index's maximum increase of 1000 points.

Investors also acted out ambiguous data for the United States. The US Department of Commerce said that the growth rate of housing construction in the US weakened more than expected in December, recording the biggest recession slightly more than a year, amid a sharp decline in the construction of single-family housing units after a two-month growth. The laying of new homes fell 8.2% to a seasonally adjusted level of 1.192 million units. The November sales were revised to 1,299 million units from previously announced 1,297 million units. The December percentage decline was the largest since November 2016. Economists predicted that the bookmarks will drop to 1.275 million units. The construction permit decreased by 0.1% to 1.302 million units in December. Construction permits increased by 4.7% to 1.263 million units in 2017, which is also the highest level since 2007.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Labor reported that the number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits fell more than expected last week, to the lowest level in 45 years, but the decline was likely to overstate the health of the labor market, as the data in the several states. Initial applications for state unemployment benefits fell by 41,000 to 220,000, seasonally adjusted for the week ending January 13, the lowest level since February 1973. The appeals for the previous week were not revised. Economists predicted that bids would fall to 250,000.

Most components of the DOW index finished trading in positive territory (16 out of 30). The leader of growth was UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (UNH, + 2.07%). Outsider were shares of General Electric Company (GE, -3.00%).

Most S & P sectors recorded a decline. The largest drop was shown by the utilities sector (-0.7%). The technological sector grew most (+ 0.2%).

At closing:

DJIA -0.37% 26.017.81 -97.84

Nasdaq -0.03% 7.296.05 -2.23

S & P -0.16% 2,798.03 -4.53