US Equities Markets End Higher Tuesday as Markets Evaluate Macro Data

04:04 PM EDT, 08/27/2024 (MT Newswires) -- US benchmark equity indexes ended higher Tuesday as markets evaluated the latest batch of economic data.

* US consumer confidence increased this month, while the annual inflation outlook declined to its lowest level in nearly four-and-a-half years, the Conference Board reported.

"Consumers continued to express mixed feelings in August," Conference Board Chief Economist Dana Peterson said. "Compared to July, they were more positive about business conditions, both current and future, but also more concerned about the labor market."

* US home prices rose to a "new all-time high" for June, though the pace of growth slowed both sequentially and annually, S&P Global (SPGI) division S&P Dow Jones Indices said.

Separately, the Federal Housing Finance Agency said home prices slipped 0.1% on a seasonally adjusted basis in June, following May's flat reading. The consensus was for a 0.1% rise in a survey compiled by Bloomberg.

* October West Texas Intermediate crude oil closed down $1.89 to settle at $75.53 per barrel, while October Brent crude, the global benchmark, was last seen down $1.76 at $79.67 spurred by reports one of Libya's competing governments is shutting off oil exports in a fight to control the country's central bank.

* Insulet (PODD) shares were up 6.6% after the company said late Monday that the US Food and Drug Administration cleared its Omnipod 5 automated insulin delivery system for adults with type-2 diabetes.

* American Woodmark (AMWD) shares slumped 10% after the cabinet maker's fiscal Q1 results dropped year over year, while the company lowered its full-year guidance amid weakness in the home remodeling market.