Wednesday Wrap consolidation

sony

Surprisingly weak housing data pressured stocks Wednesday, but equities closed well off session lows.

The Nasdaq lost 0.5%, dragged down by software issues. But the tech index was down 1.1% at its intraday low.

Meanwhile, the Dow and NYSE composite slipped 0.1% each. The S&P 500 lost a fraction.

Volume rose on the Nasdaq, giving the index its second distribution day since the Nov. 9 follow-through day.