Consumer companies fell after heated inflation expectations.

In an inflation survey, year-ahead inflation expectations jumped from 2.8% last month to 3.3%.

Used-home sales fell in 2024 to the lowest level since 1995, the second straight year of anemic sales due to stubbornly high mortgage rates.

Target, one of the most full-throated corporate supporters of Black and LGBTQ rights, was the latest major corporation to roll back Diversity Equity and Inclusion measures.

The average rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage has hovered between 6% and 8% since late 2022, making it prohibitively expensive for many Americans to buy homes at current prices, which hit record highs last year.

The University of Michigan's index of consumer sentiment dipped to 71.1 at the end of January, below both the mid-month reading and the previous month, the university said. It also was below economists' expectations for a reading of 73.2, according to a poll compiled by The Wall Street Journal.


Write to Rob Curran at rob.curran@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

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