Brands took a breather Wednesday. Stocks traded lower in the wake of comments from Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke. Addressing Congress, Mr. Bernanke described the pace of economic growth as “uneven and modest by historical standards.” He did, however, cite some improvement in the labor market and noted that headwinds such as Europe and a weak housing market would fade beyond this year. On another note, the Fed’s Beige Book report, released this afternoon, showed some improvement in the housing sector in most of its 12 districts; a slight hiring increase across several districts; and improving manufacturing activity, with a rise in new orders, shipments and production. Elsewhere, crude oil added 52 cents to settle at $107.07 a barrel. On the horizon, weekly data on initial jobless claims and January reports on personal income and spending will be released tomorrow.
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