Investing.com - U.S. stocks finished Wednesday higher after investors shrugged off an overall mixed bag of economic indicators and applauded choppy but noteworthy data out of the housing sector.
At the close of U.S. trading, the Dow 30 rose 0.07%, the S&P 500 index rose 0.28%, while the Nasdaq Composite index rose 0.61%.
The S&P 500 VIX index, which measures the outlook for market volatility, was down 1.06% at 12.12.
The National Association of Realtors reported pending home sales fell 1.1% in October, missing forecasts for a 0.9% gain, though official data revealed that new home sales rose 0.7% in October to an annual rate of 458,000 units, in line with market forecasts.
Also on Wednesday, the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan's final consumer sentiment index hit 88.8 from 86.9 in October, still below the preliminary estimate of 89.4 though a positive number nonetheless, investors concluded, shrugging off disappointments elsewhere.
The Labor Department reported earlier that the number of individuals filing new applications for unemployment benefits rose to 313,000 last week, a gain of 21,000. It was the highest level since early September, confounding market calls for a decrease of 5,000.
The number of continuing claims fell to a 14-year low of 2.31 million, indicating that the jobs market is still recovering.
At the same time, the Commerce Department reported that U.S. personal spending rose 0.2% in October, below forecasts for an increase 0.4%. Personal income also rose 0.2%, falling short of forecasts of 0.4%.
Elsewhere, the Census Bureau reported that durable goods orders rose 0.4% last month, beating expectations for a decline of 0.4%, but core durable goods orders, which are stripped of volatile transportation components, fell 0.9%, against forecasts for a 0.5% gain.
Industry data revealed that the Chicago purchasing managers’ index fell from 66.2 in October to 60.8 this month, below expectations of a figure of 63.1.
Elsewhere, falling oil prices drew applause on Wall Street by stoking expectations that less money spent at the gasoline pump will translate into more consumer spending this holiday season and boost retail stocks.
Leading Dow Jones Industrial Average performers included Pfizer Inc (NYSE:PFE), up 2.08%, Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC), up 1.49%, and Verizon Communications Inc (NYSE:VZ), up 1.43%.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average's worst performers included United Technologies Corporation (NYSE:UTX), down 1.39%, Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX), down 0.88%, and McDonald's Corporation (NYSE:MCD), down 0.80%.
European indices, meanwhile, ended the day largely lower.
After the close of European trade, the Euro Stoxx 50 fell 0.40%, France's CAC 40 fell 0.20%, while Germany's DAX 30 rose 0.55%. Meanwhile, in the U.K. the FTSE 100 fell 0.03%.
U.S. markets will be closed on Thursday for the Thanksgiving holiday.