Stock Market Update

[BRIEFING.COM] The major averages continue to chart session highs at midday, with the S&P 500 (+0.6%) currently trading above its all-time closing high (6,942.82).

U.S. homebuilder stocks are trading higher today as investors respond positively to signals of potential policy support for housing and evidence of resilient single-family construction demand. The iShares U.S. Home Construction ETF is up 5.0% due to solid gains from names such as Lennar (LEN 116.63, +7.08, +6.46%) and D.R. Horton (DHI 154.99, +9.09, +6.23%).

The key catalyst this morning is commentary from NEC Director Kevin Hassett indicating that President Trump will unveil a "comprehensive housing plan" at the World Economic Forum, with $200 billion in mortgage-backed securities (MBS) purchases described as only a small part of the overall package.

Additionally, the October Housing Starts report shows single-unit starts up 5.4% month-over-month and at their highest level since July, with weakness in the headline figure (a 4.6% decline) concentrated in multi-family. The shift toward single-family construction is generally favorable for the major public homebuilders, which are more leveraged to detached single-family demand.