Economic indicators

Pending home sales dropped 2.2% to an index reading of 99.0 in December, after a revised 0.9% decline to 101.2 in November.

Private-sector employment increased by 213,000 in January, on a seasonally adjusted basis, ADP estimated Wednesday.

Texas service sector activity “grew at a faster pace in January,” according to business executives responding to the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas' Texas Service Sector Outlook Survey, as the revenue index climbed to 14.9, from 10.1.

The consumer confidence index decreased to 120.2 in December from a downwardly revised 126.6 last month.

Texas factory activity growth, as measured by the production index, “continued to expand in January.”

The Chicago Fed National Activity Index for December rose to 0.27 from a downwardly revised 0.21 in November.

The December Chicago Business Barometer was revised down to 63.8 from 65.4 previously, following the annual seasonal adjustments.

Respondents to the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City's monthly manufacturing survey reported slower growth in January, while expectations grew.

The composite of the Leading Economic Index was off 0.1% in December following an unrevised 0.2% rise in November, the Conference Board said Thursday.

Initial claims for U.S. state unemployment benefits fell by 13,000 to 199,000 in the Jan. 19 week, well below expectations for a 210,000 level.

Service sector “continued to grow modestly in January,” according to the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond service-sector activity survey, released Wednesday.

Manufacturing growth in the central Atlantic region “was soft in January,” according to the monthly business activity survey conducted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, as the manufacturing index climbed to negative 2 from negative 8.

Existing home sales fell 6.4% to a seasonally adjusted 4.99 million-unit rate in December.

The Philadelphia region's services sector reading fell in January, Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia said on Tuesday.

The University of Michigan's preliminary January consumer sentiment index reading was 90.7, compared to the final December 98.3 and the preliminary December 97.5, according to market sources.

Industrial production grew 0.3% in December, the Federal Reserve reported Friday.

The initial claims data fell by 3,000 to 213,000 in the Jan. 12 employment survey week, below expectations for a 218,000 level.

Manufacturers report expansion at a faster pace in January, and Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia Report on Business respondents said price indexes continued trending lower.

The still-strong U.S. economy showed signs of slowing in recent weeks amid declining optimism, though most regions continued to show modest to moderate growth, a Federal Reserve survey showed.

Builders’ confidence in the market for new single-family homes grew as the National Association of Home Builders' housing market index rebounded to 58 in January from 56 in December.