03:26 PM EST, 01/17/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Financial stocks were advancing in late Friday afternoon trading, with the NYSE Financial Index up 0.6% and the Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLF) ahead 0.9%.

The Philadelphia Housing Index rose 0.5%, and the Real Estate Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLRE) added 0.1%.

Bitcoin (BTC-USD) spiked 5.4% to $105,436, and the yield for 10-year US Treasuries was little changed at 4.61%.

In economic news, housing starts in December rebounded by almost 16% to a 1.499 million annual rate, beating expectations in a Bloomberg survey for a 1.33 million rate after a decrease to a 1.294 million pace in November.

US industrial production rose by 0.9% in December, above expectations for a 0.3% increase in a Bloomberg-compiled survey, and following an upwardly revised 0.2% increase in November.

The International Monetary Fund raised its global and US economic growth expectations for this year, but said the balance of risks to the overall outlook is tilted to the downside in the medium term. The agency now projects 2025 global real GDP growth at 3.3%, up from a 3.2% gain estimated in October.

In corporate news, TeraWulf ( WULF ) , MicroStrategy ( MSTR ) and Mara's (MARA) shares rose in recent trading following news that President-elect Donald Trump plans to issue an executive order upgrading crypto as a policy priority, Bloomberg reported. TeraWulf ( WULF ) shares surged 8.6%, MicroStrategy ( MSTR ) jumped 7.4%, and Mara popped nearly 9%.