U.S. New Home Sales Rebound Less Than Expected In February

RTTNews | 26 days ago
U.S. New Home Sales Rebound Less Than Expected In February

(RTTNews) - After reporting a sharp pullback by new home sales in the U.S. in the previous month, the Commerce Department released a report on Tuesday showing new home sales rebounded by less than expected in the month of February.

The Commerce Department said new home sales jumped by 1.8 percent to an annual rate of 676,000 in February after plunging by 6.9 percent to a revised rate of 664,000 in January.

Economists had expected new home sales to surge by 3.5 percent to an annual rate of 680,000 from the 657,000 originally reported for the previous month.

The rebound by new home sales partly reflected a sharp increase by new home sales in the Midwest, which skyrocketed by 20.6 percent.

New home sales in the South also spiked by 6.6 percent, while new home sales in the West and Northeast plummeted by 13.6 percent and 21.4 percent, respectively.

The report also said the median sales price of new houses sold in February was $414,500, down 3.0 percent from $427,400 in January and down 1.5 percent from $420,900 in the same month a year ago.

The estimate of new houses for sale at the end of February was 500,000, which represents 8.9 months of supply at the current sales rate. The month of supply is down from 9.0 in January but up from 8.7 in February 2024.

Last Thursday, the National Association of Realtors released a separate report showing existing home sales unexpectedly rebounded in the month of February.

NAR said existing home sales surged by 4.2 percent to an annual rate of 4.26 million in February after tumbling by 4.7 percent to a revised rate of 4.09 million in January.

The sharp increase surprised economists, who had expected existing home sales to slump by another 3.2 percent to an annual rate of 3.95 million from the 4.08 million originally reported for the previous month.

read more
Philly Fed Index Plummets To Two-Year Low In April

Philly Fed Index Plummets To Two-Year Low In April

The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia released a report on Thursday showing a steep drop by its reading on regional manufacturing activity in the month of April. The Philly Fed said its diffusion index for current general activity plummeted to a negative 26.4 in April from a positive 12.5 in March, with a negative reading indicating contraction.
RTTNews | 3 days ago
U.S. Weekly Jobless Claims Unexpectedly Dip To Two-Month Low

U.S. Weekly Jobless Claims Unexpectedly Dip To Two-Month Low

First-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits unexpectedly saw a modest decrease in the week ended April 12th, according to a report released by the Labor Department on Thursday. The report said initial jobless claims slipped to 215,000, a decrease of 9,000 from the previous week's revised level of 224,000.
RTTNews | 3 days ago
U.S. Housing Starts Plunge 11.4% In March, Much More Than Expected

U.S. Housing Starts Plunge 11.4% In March, Much More Than Expected

A report released by the Commerce Department on Thursday showed new residential construction in the U.S. pulled back by much more than expected in the month of March. The Commerce Department said housing starts plunged by 11.4 percent to an annual rate of 1.324 million in March after surging by 9.8 percent to a revised rate of 1.494 million in February.
RTTNews | 3 days ago
U.S. Weekly Jobless Claims Unexpectedly Dip

U.S. Weekly Jobless Claims Unexpectedly Dip

First-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits unexpectedly saw a modest decrease in the week ended April 12th, according to a report released by the Labor Department on Thursday.
RTTNews | 3 days ago
U.S. Business Inventories Rise In Line With Estimates In February

U.S. Business Inventories Rise In Line With Estimates In February

A report released by the Commerce Department on Wednesday showed business inventories in the U.S. increased in line with economist estimates in the month of February. The Commerce Department said business inventories rose by 0.2 percent in February after climbing by 0.3 percent in January.
RTTNews | 4 days ago
U.S. Homebuilder Confidence Unexpectedly Inches Higher In April

U.S. Homebuilder Confidence Unexpectedly Inches Higher In April

The National Association of Home Builders released a report on Wednesday unexpectedly showing a slight improvement by U.S. homebuilder confidence in the month of April. The report said the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index inched up to 40 in April after falling to 39 in March. Economists had expected the index to dip to 37.
RTTNews | 4 days ago