Investing.com - U.S. existing home sales rose less-than-expected in January, while the previous month’s figure was revised down by nearly 5%, industry data showed on Wednesday.
In a report, the National Association of Realtors said that existing home sales rose by 4.3% to a seasonally adjusted 4.57 million units in January, below expectations for a gain of 6.2% to 4.67 million units.
Existing home sales in December was revised down by nearly 5% to 4.38 million units from a previously reported 4.61 million.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said strong gains in contract activity in recent months show buyers are responding to very favorable market conditions.
“The uptrend in home sales is in line with all of the underlying fundamentals – pent-up household formation, record-low mortgage interest rates, bargain home prices, sustained job creation and rising rents.”
“A government proposal to turn bank-owned properties into rentals on a large scale does not appear to be needed at this time,” he added.
Following the release of the data, the U.S. dollar added to modest gains against the euro, with EUR/USD shedding 0.12% to trade at 1.3217.
Meanwhile, U.S. equity markets were lower after the open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 0.15%, the S&P 500 index fell 0.2%, while the Nasdaq Composite index slumped 0.1%.
In a report, the National Association of Realtors said that existing home sales rose by 4.3% to a seasonally adjusted 4.57 million units in January, below expectations for a gain of 6.2% to 4.67 million units.
Existing home sales in December was revised down by nearly 5% to 4.38 million units from a previously reported 4.61 million.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said strong gains in contract activity in recent months show buyers are responding to very favorable market conditions.
“The uptrend in home sales is in line with all of the underlying fundamentals – pent-up household formation, record-low mortgage interest rates, bargain home prices, sustained job creation and rising rents.”
“A government proposal to turn bank-owned properties into rentals on a large scale does not appear to be needed at this time,” he added.
Following the release of the data, the U.S. dollar added to modest gains against the euro, with EUR/USD shedding 0.12% to trade at 1.3217.
Meanwhile, U.S. equity markets were lower after the open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 0.15%, the S&P 500 index fell 0.2%, while the Nasdaq Composite index slumped 0.1%.