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NEW YORK (AP) - Stocks tried to carve out modest gains Friday after a surprise jump in sales of existing homes last month lent strength to the growing notion that the housing sector may not be as weak as feared. Technology stocks lagged, however, following a handful of profit warnings this week.
Existing home sales rose by the biggest amount in nearly three years in February amid a sharp increase in sales in the Northeast, the National Association of Realtors said. The 3.9 percent increase was the largest since a similar jump in March 2004; analysts had been expecting a decrease.
Still, the report did have some downbeat aspects — the median price of a home fell year-over-year for the seventh straight month and inventories rose.
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