1st LD Writethru: U.S. stocks rally amid housing data

U.S. stocks pared part of early gains to end higher Monday, as investors meditated on the U.S. existing-home sales.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 121.90 points, or 0.74 percent, to 16,506.48. The S&P 500 gained 12.83 points, or 0.66 percent, to 1,970.86. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 27.12 points, or 0.56 percent, to 4,854.34.

U.S. total existing-home sales fell 4.8 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.31 million in August, missing market consensus of 5.50 million, said the National Association of Realtors Monday.

Existing home sales slowed in August but remained up 6.2 percent year-on-year. Limited supply and rising home prices are likely to keep the housing market from a serious liftoff,"said Sophia Kearney-Lederman, an economic analyst at FTN Financial, in a note. "So, home sales are likely to continue their gradual upward ascent heading into next year."

Meanwhile, investors continued to assess the U.S. Federal Reserve's decision to leave short-term interest rates unchanged. The U.S. central bank held its benchmark rate near zero after concluding its two-day monetary policy meeting Thursday.

Investors will focus on the next Fed meeting slated for Oct. 27-28, as most Fed officials still expect a rate hike this year, the first in nine years. Analysts said markets might see some volatility this week.

"Such is the 'hypothetical' cost of uncertainty. Today, at least is a new day," said Stephen Guilfoyle, managing director at Deep Value, Monday.

Wall Street suffered big losses Friday, as the Fed's decision triggered increasing concerns about a slowdown in global growth.

Overseas, Chinese shares surged after volatile trading Monday, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index retrieving earlier losses to end up 1.89 percent. Endit