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Economy in Brief
U.S. FHFA House Price Rise Moderates
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Price Index for house purchases increased 0.2% in July (6.4% y/y)...
Philadelphia Fed Nonmanufacturing Business Activity Index Improves
The Philadelphia Fed reported that its Nonmanufacturing Business Index of current conditions at the company level increased to 46.8 in September...
U.S. Gasoline Prices Remain High; Crude Oil Costs Strengthen
Gasoline prices, at $2.84 per gallon last week (10.1% y/y), were unchanged from the prior week...
French Manufacturing Takes a Sizable Step Back
France's INSEE manufacturing survey fell sharply as the headline climate index shed the better part of three points...
Texas Factory Sector Index Retreats; Expectations Are Mixed
The Dallas Fed indicated in its Texas Manufacturing Outlook Survey that the General Business Activity Index fell to 28.1 in September...
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 |
