Summary: Stocks fluctuated in quiet trading ahead of the long Christmas break weekend. Dow 20,000, which looked all but a certainty earlier in the week, has grown more remote since Wednesday. New home sales surged in November in the latest sign of a housing recovery chugging along. Sales of new homes rose by 5.2%, stronger than economists' consensus. Consumer sentiment increased to its best level in 12 years as Americans grew more confident in the strength of the U.S. economy. Consumers were also more positive over President-elect Trump's economic politics. Chinese officials hit GM with a roughly $29 million fine after an investigation into alleged monopolistic pricing activities. GM reportedly colluded with dealers to fix prices for a number of its vehicles, breaking antitrust laws.
