Investing.com - Pending home sales in the U.S. fell unexpectedly in December, raising concerns over the health of the housing sector, industry data showed on Thursday.
In a report, the National Association of Realtors said its pending home sales index decreased by a seasonally adjusted 3.7% last month, disappointing expectations for a 0.5% gain.
Pending home sales in November rose by 0.6%, whose figure was revised down from a previously reported gain of 0.8%.
Year-on-year, pending home sales rose at annualized rate of 6.1% in December, below expectations for an increase of 10.9% and following a gain of 4.1% in November.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, says fewer homes available for sale and a slight acceleration in prices likely led to December’s decline in contract signings.
"Total inventory fell in December for the first time in 16 months, resulting in fewer choices for buyers and a modest uptick in price growth in markets throughout the country," he said.
EUR/USD was trading at 1.1330 from around 1.1335 ahead of the release of the data, while GBP/USD was at 1.5116 from 1.5120 earlier, while USD/JPY was at 117.96 from 118.00 earlier.
The US dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six major rivals, was at 94.74, compared to 94.70 ahead of the report.
Meanwhile, U.S. stock markets were mixed after the open. The Dow 30 tacked on 0.15%, the S&P 500 dipped 0.25%, while the Nasdaq 100 shed 0.35%.
Elsewhere, in the commodities market, gold futures traded at $1,272.20 a troy ounce, compared to $1,272.50 ahead of the data, while crude oil traded at $44.78 a barrel from $44.89 earlier.