Investing.com - The S&P/Case-Shiller home price index fell more-than-expected in February, declining for the 20th consecutive month as U.S. home prices fell to the lowest level since 2002, industry data showed on Tuesday.
In a report, Standard & Poor’s with Case-Shiller said its house price index fell at an annualized rate of 3.5% in February from a year earlier, compared to expectations for a 3.4% decline.
U.S. home prices in January fell by an unrevised 3.8%.
Month-on-month, U.S. home prices dipped 0.8% in February, worse than expectations for a modest 0.2% decline.
Commenting on the report, David M. Blitzer, Chairman of the Index Committee at Standard & Poor’s said, “While there might be pieces of good news in this report, February 2012 data confirm that, broadly-speaking, home prices continued to decline in the early months of the year.”
Following the release of the data, the U.S. dollar was fractionally lower against the euro, with EUR/USD easing up 0.03% to trade at 1.3161.
Meanwhile, U.S. stock future indices turned mixed after the release of the data. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a gain of 0.1%, S&P 500 futures shed 0.05%, while the Nasdaq 100 futures pointed to a decline of 0.1% at the open.
In a report, Standard & Poor’s with Case-Shiller said its house price index fell at an annualized rate of 3.5% in February from a year earlier, compared to expectations for a 3.4% decline.
U.S. home prices in January fell by an unrevised 3.8%.
Month-on-month, U.S. home prices dipped 0.8% in February, worse than expectations for a modest 0.2% decline.
Commenting on the report, David M. Blitzer, Chairman of the Index Committee at Standard & Poor’s said, “While there might be pieces of good news in this report, February 2012 data confirm that, broadly-speaking, home prices continued to decline in the early months of the year.”
Following the release of the data, the U.S. dollar was fractionally lower against the euro, with EUR/USD easing up 0.03% to trade at 1.3161.
Meanwhile, U.S. stock future indices turned mixed after the release of the data. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a gain of 0.1%, S&P 500 futures shed 0.05%, while the Nasdaq 100 futures pointed to a decline of 0.1% at the open.