Gold Prices Holding Gains As U.S. Existing Home Sales Rise 1.4% In October
(Kitco News)- Goldprices are holding on to modest gains, following the news that U.S. consumersbought slightly more pre-existing homes in October, according to the latestreport from the National Association of Realtors (NAR).
Wednesday,existing home sales increased 1.4% last month to a seasonally adjusted andannualized rate of 5.22 million units, compared to September's annualized rateof 5.15 million homes, the association said on Monday. According to consensusforecasts, economists were expecting to see a rate of 5.20 million homes.
Thegold market has recently benefiting from shifting sentiment in the marketplaceas investors have become more pessimistic on equity markets due to growingglobal growth concerns. The yellow metal is seeing little reaction to themodest beat in home sales. December gold futures last traded at $1.226.80 anounce, up 0.46% on the day.
Thedata will come as a slight relief for some market players who have highlightedgrowing weakness in the housing market. According to some economists higherprices, rising mortgage rates -- due to rising interest rates, are pricing manynew home buyers out of the marketplace.
Despitethe better-than-expected data, home sales have been in a sharp decline sincethe start of the year. Home sales are down 5.1% for the year, the largest 12-month drop since July 2014.
“Demand is being choked off by higher interest rates,”said Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist. “Maybe the Federal Reserve can take a little pause in their interest rate hikes to give the chance for the housing market to be on firmer ground.”
Looking at home prices, the report said that the median house price last month rose to $255,400, up 3.8% from October 2017.
By Neils ChristensenFor Kitco News
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