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Economy in Brief
U.S. Initial Unemployment Insurance Claims Decline Sharply
Initial claims for unemployment insurance fell sharply to 209,000 (-17.1% y/y)...
U.S. Mortgage Loan Applications Are Little Changed; Rates Remain High
The MBA total Mortgage Applications Volume Index eased 0.2% last week (-1.9% y/y)...
Japan Shows Very Moderate Growth As Trade War Clouds Gather
Japan’s sector indexes showed a solid gain in February...
U.S. Consumer Confidence Unexpectedly Rose in April
The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index rose to 128.7 in April from 127.0 (initially reported as 127.7) in March...
U.S. New Home Sales and Prices Strengthen
Sales of new single-family homes during March increased 4.0% (8.8% y/y) to 694,000 (SAAR)...
by Tom Moeller September 19, 2005
The National Association of Home Builders' (NAHB) Composite Housing Market Index fell for the third straight month in September to 65 from an unrevised 67 in August. The latest was the lowest level since July 2003.
During the last twenty years, year to year changes in the annual composite index had an 85% correlation with the change in single family housing starts.
The m/m decline was spread throughout the country.
The September index for sales of single family homes in six months fell sharply to 69 (-8.0% y/y) while the index for current sales fell moderately to 72 (-1.4% y/y).
The NAHB index is a diffusion index based on a survey of builders. Readings above 50 signal that more builders view conditions as good than poor.
Visit the National Association of Home Builders.
| Nat'l Association of Home Builders | Sept | Aug | Sept '04 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Composite Housing Market Index | 65 | 67 | 67 | 68 | 64 | 61 |
