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Economy in Brief
Import Prices Continue Their Decline; Both Oil and Nonoil Prices Move Lower
Import prices fell a greater-than-expected 0.5% during January (-1.7% year-on-year)...
Empire State Manufacturing Activity Improves Modestly
The Empire State Manufacturing Index of General Business Conditions rose to 8.8 during February...
EMU-16 Trade Flows and Balance
EMU-wide exports ticked lower in December as imports were flat...
U.S. Retail Sales Exhibit Extensive Weakness
Total retail sales declined 1.2% (+2.3% y/y) during December...
U.S. Producer Prices Decline; Core PPI Rises
The headline Final Demand Producer Price Index edged down 0.1% for the second consecutive month in January (+2.0% y/y)...
by Tom Moeller November 29, 2012
Pending sales of single-family homes jumped 5.2% (13.2% y/y) last
month after a little revised 0.4% September rise, according to the National
Association of Realtors (NAR). The latest figure broke home sales out of the
sideways trend in place for much of this year.
The rise in sales was led by a 15.6% increase (20.0% y/y) in the Midwest and sales also rose 5.5% (17.4% y/y) in the South. Elsewhere in the country there was no strength. Sales fell 1.1% (+0.9% y/y) in the West and slipped 0.1% (+13.3% y/y) in the Northeast.
Pending home sales figures are analogous to the new home sales data from the Commerce Department in that they measure existing home sales when the sales contract is signed, not at the time the sale is closed. The series dates back to 2001 and the data are available in Haver's PREALTOR database.
The Fed's latest Beige Book covering regional economic conditions is available here.
| Pending Home Sales (2001=100) | Oct | Sep | Aug | Y/Y% | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 104.8 | 99.6 | 99.2 | 13.2 | 90.3 | 89.2 | 94.7 |
| Northeast | 79.2 | 79.3 | 78.2 | 13.3 | 68.0 | 70.9 | 76.8 |
| Midwest | 104.4 | 90.3 | 95.0 | 20.0 | 81.6 | 79.9 | 88.9 |
| South | 117.3 | 111.2 | 110.4 | 17.4 | 98.3 | 97.0 | 98.4 |
| West | 105.7 | 106.9 | 102.5 | 0.9 | 104.2 | 100.8 | 109.2 |
