04:08 PM EDT, 04/18/2024 (MT Newswires) -- US equity markets ended mixed Thursday as investors assessed the latest corporate earnings.

* Manufacturing activity in the Mid-Atlantic region unexpectedly improved this month as demand and shipments grew, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia said. The Manufacturing Business Outlook Survey's headline gauge for business activity rose to 15.5 in April from 3.2 in March, compared with a consensus for a reading of 2 in a survey compiled by Bloomberg.

* Existing home sales dropped 4.3% month over month in March to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.19 million units, compared with a 4.1% decline estimated in a survey compiled by Bloomberg. On an annual basis, sales were down 3.7%.

* May West Texas Intermediate crude oil closed down $0.02 to $82.67 per barrel, while June Brent crude, the global benchmark, was last seen down $0.26 to $87.03 as geopolitical risk eased.

* 23andME (ME) surged past 42% after saying in a filing that Chief Executive Anne Wojcicki told board members she is considering a plan to acquire the company in a go-private deal.

* Tesla (TSLA) shares fell 3.3% after various media reported that Chief Executive Elon Musk wrote in an internal email Wednesday that some laid-off employees received "incorrectly low" severance packages.