Recent Updates
- US: GDP by Industry (Q4)
- Poland: PPI, IP (Mar); Bulgaria: BOP (Feb); Romania: Turnover & New Orders (Feb); Russia: External Debt Payment Schedule (Q4)
- Sweden: Dwelling Stock (2017); Norway: Bank Lending Survey (Q2), Oil & Gas Production (Mar)
- US: NCI Economic Activity Index (Apr)
- Qatar: IP (Feb); Kuwait: CPI (Mar); South Africa: Wholesale & Motor Trade Sales (Feb); Bahrain: CPI (Mar)
- UK: Retail Sales (Mar), RICS Construction Market Survey (Q1), FCA
- more updates...
Economy in Brief
Japan’s Trade Surplus Returns Even As Trade Flows Slow
While the IMF has just lifted its outlook for growth in 2018, Japan is logging weaker and weaker export and import growth as the year progresses...
U.S. Industrial Production Strengthens; Factory Output Ticks Higher
The Fed reported that industrial production increased 0.5% (4.3% y/y) during March...
U.S. Housing Starts and Building Permits Recover
Total housing starts in March increased 1.9% to 1.319 million units (SAAR)...
U.S. Gasoline and Crude Oil Prices Strengthen
Retail gasoline prices rebounded to $2.75 per gallon last week (22.8% y/y)...
ZEW Expectations Take a Dive: From Fear to Eternity
Current conditions indexes in the ZEW framework usually do not change by much month-to-month...
by Tom Moeller March 27, 2013
Pending sales of single-family homes slipped 0.4% (+8.5% y/y) last
month after a 3.8% January rise, revised from 4.5%, according to the
National Association of Realtors (NAR). The sales rebound in the aftermath
of the removal in 2010 of the home buyers tax credit has raised home sales
by more than one-third from the low.
The slip in sales last month reflected approximate stability across the country. Sales in the Northeast nudged down 2.5% (+6.8% y/y) following an 8.3% January increase. Sales in the Midwest ticked up 0.4% (13.1% y/y) following a 2.7% January gain while and sales in the South slipped 0.3% (+12.1% y/y) following a 5.8% January jump. Sales in the West posted a 0.1% uptick (-0.8% y/y) after a 0.7% slip during January.
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.
Estimated Rules for Monetary Policy from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis is available here.
Pending Home Sales (2001=100) | Feb | Jan | Dec | Y/Y% | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Total | 104.8 | 105.2 | 101.3 | 8.5 | 100.3 | 90.2 | 89.1 |
Northeast | 82.8 | 84.9 | 78.4 | 6.8 | 79.1 | 67.9 | 70.9 |
Midwest | 103.6 | 103.2 | 100.5 | 13.1 | 95.9 | 81.5 | 79.8 |
South | 118.8 | 119.2 | 112.7 | 12.1 | 110.7 | 98.3 | 97.0 |
West | 101.4 | 101.3 | 102.0 | -0.8 | 105.0 | 104.1 | 100.7 |