New home sales climb to seven-year high
(Flickr / Steven Martin)
New home sales rose more than expected to a seven-year high in May, according to the Census Bureau.
Sales jumped 2.2% month-over-month to an annual rate of 546,000 – the highest level since February 2008.
Economists had forecast that sales rose 1.2% to an annual rate of 523,000, according to Bloomberg.
Last month saw a 6.8% spike in new home sales. The annual rate was revised to 534,000 from 517,000.
In a note to clients after the data, UBS' Maury Harris noted that just like the existing and pending home sales reports, new home sales gains were led by the Northeast region.
"The new home sales data are notoriously volatile, but the recent strength echoes that of homebuilder confidence, mortgage applications, and other sales measures," Harris wrote.
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