Stocks Ended Mixed ahead of Yellen Testimony

U.S. stocks ended mixed on Monday, as lower oil prices dragged down energy shares, ahead of Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen’s two-day address to Congress that begins on Tuesday. At close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 23.60 points, or 0.13%, to 18,116.84. The S&P 500 was off 0.64 point, or 0.03%, to 2,109.66. The Nasdaq Composite gained 5.01 points, or 0.10%, to 4,960.97.

Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen’s testimony to Congress this week may surprise investors by keeping alive the idea of a June rate hike, which would be seen as a tilt toward the hawkish side.

Crude-oil futures settled below $50 a barrel on Monday amid investor concerns about excess crude supply in U.S. markets. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, crude for delivery in April lost $1.36, or 2.7%, to settle at $49.45 a barrel.

Broad-based price increases put more properties out of reach for American homebuyers in January. Purchases of existing houses dropped 4.9 percent from December to a 4.82 million annualized rate, the least since April, figures from the National Association of Realtors showed Monday in Washington.