Main US indexes advance ~2% or more
All S&P 500 sectors green; Cons Disc leads gainers
Euro STOXX 600 index up >2%
Dollar declines; gold off >1%; US crude slides >11%; bitcoin up ~4%
US 10-Year Treasury yield falls to ~4.33%
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CONSTRUCTION SPENDING SHRINKS IN JANUARY'S CHILL
Investors who were starving for a feast of economic data on Monday had to make do with a two-month-old morsel from the Commerce Department in the form of its construction spending report.
U.S. construction outlays USTCNS=ECI unexpectedly contracted by 0.3% in January, defying analyst expectations of a slight 0.1% uptick to extend December's upwardly revised 0.8% increase.
Much of the decline was likely attributable to harsh winter weather which held much of the country in its icy grip during the first few weeks of the year.
Drilling below the headline, private sector spending dipped 0.6% while publicly funded projects grew by 0.6%.
A 3.3% jump in outlays on highways and streets and a 1.1% rise in office construction helped limit the overall weakness.
The residential segment, which often provides much of the upside muscle to the total (not to mention doing double-duty as a housing market indicator), fell 0.8%. The drop marked a partial reversal of the prior month's 2.5% surge.
This data agrees with recent data showing drops in new home sales, building permits, homebuilder sentiment and other metrics.
(Stephen Culp)
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EARLIER ON LIVE MARKETS:
US STOCKS RALLY, OIL SLIDES ON HOPES FOR IRAN DEAL CLICK HERE
S&P 500 FUTURES SURGE WITH TRADERS BRACED FOR SHARP SWINGS CLICK HERE
WHY CHINA MATTERS IN IRAN CRISIS CLICK HERE
TRUMP'S LATEST U-TURN LIFTS STOCKS, IRAN SAYS NOT SO FAST CLICK HERE
EUROPEAN EARNINGS GROWTH WIPED OUT IN ECB ADVERSE SCENARIO CLICK HERE
EUROPEAN SCREENS FLASH RED, CORRECTION IN SIGHT CLICK HERE
OF COURSE TRUMP WOULD HAVE A COUNTDOWN CLICK HERE
EUROPE BEFORE THE BELL: FUTURES SINK CLICK HERE
SPXstocksabove50DMA03232026 https://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/buzz/myvmykwyavr/PercentSPXstocksabove50DMA03232026.png
EarlyTrade03232026 https://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/buzz/gkvlkdegdpb/EarlyTrade03232026.png
Construction spending https://www.reuters.com/graphics/USA-STOCKS/myvmykrggvr/constspend.png
Residential construction spending and NAHB homebuilder sentiment https://www.reuters.com/graphics/USA-STOCKS/xmvjyrwlkpr/resconst.png
(Terence Gabriel is a Reuters market analyst. The views expressed are his own)
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