The markets opened the week mixed as investors anticipated the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates later in the week. Tuesday’s action was marked by a selloff in the oil market, as investors worried that an increase in U.S. production could impede efforts to reduce supply, which has kept oil prices sliding since January 2016. In economic news, the Producer Price Index climbed 0.3% in February following a 0.6% jump in January. As expected, midweek, the Federal Reserve announced it would raise interest rates, and stocks rose on the news. Furthermore, the Fed officials indicated they expect to raise short-term interest rates three times this year. Indices ended with mixed moves on Thursday, with Financials ending strong while Health Care and Utilities took a breather. Housing starts ticked up in February, increasing 3% last month while building permits dipped 6.2%. The indices continued with mixed moves on Friday as the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 shed some points while the NASDAQ closed with fractional gains. The University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment survey showed that consumer confidence is on an upswing this month. The index hit 97.6 in a preliminary reading for March, versus February’s final reading of 96.3. Looking elsewhere, industrial production registered a flat reading in February. The result was shy of estimates for an increase of 0.3%.
