Market Recap: Stocks Mixed, Signs of Economic Growth?

Markets closed mixed on Wall Street today:

▼ Dow -0.01 percent
▲ S&P +0.17 percent
▲ Nasdaq +0.23 percent
▲ Oil +1.77 percent
▼ Gold -0.67 percent

On the commodities front:

▲ Oil (NYSE:USO) rose to $109.74 a barrel

Precious metals:

▲ Gold (NYSE:GLD) up to $1,774.30 an ounce
▼ Silver (NYSE:SLV) fell 0.47 percent to settle at $35.47

(Related: Will the U.S. Release Oil Reserves to Ease Gas Prices?)

Today’s markets were mixed because:

1) Housing: New home sales fell in January but an upward revision to December’s data and a reported drop in the supply of properties on the market might signal a recovery in the housing sector. In fact, the inventory of new homes on the market in January was the lowest on record, as the slow recovery and flood of foreclosed properties on the market have discouraged new construction.

Of course, this is entirely dependent on the authentic of reported data.

Meanwhile, existing-home sales jumped 4.3 percent in January, according to a report earlier this week, to the highest level since May 2010. Confidence among homebuilders approached a five-year high this month, though, and builders are indicating that they’re ready to undertake more residential projects.

2) Consumers: Consumer sentiment rose to a 12-month high in February as Americans became more confident in the resilience of the U.S. economy, according to a Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan survey. Though the survey’s gauge of current economic conditions cooled, roughly one-third of consumers responding to the survey reported hearing about more job opportunities, the highest proportion ever recorded by the survey.

3) Companies: J.C. Penney shares slipped after reporting sales that fell short of expectations for the fourth quarter, though the department store chain beat earnings estimates. AIG reported fourth-quarter profits of nearly $20 billion, thanks to an accounting change, giving shares a boost, while Salesforce.com also popped after the company topped earnings and sales expectations late Thursday. Gap shares fell after the retailer missed earnings and sales expectations, while Crocs tumbled after the shoemaker issued a downbeat outlook for the first quarter of 2012.

[Editor’s note: the above is a cross post that originally appeared on Wall St. Cheat Sheet.]