(Kitco News) Gold was trading down 1% on the day as the U.S. new home sales beat expectations in September with an advance of 14%. The prior month's number was revised down.
New home sales were at a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 800,000 homes in September, the U.S. Commerce Department said on Tuesday. August's sales were revised down to a rate of 702,000 units.
The market consensus called for sales to advance to 760,000 units in September.
On an annual basis, new home sales were down 17.6% from last year's estimate of 971,000 units.
Gold dropped to fresh daily lows following the data, with December Comex gold futures last trading at $1,789.90, down 0.94% on the day.
Looking at home prices, the report said that the median sales price for homes sold last month was $408,800, while the average price was $451,700.
As of the end of September, the inventory of houses for sale was at 379,000, representing a 5.7-month supply at the current sales rate.
By Anna GolubovaFor Kitco News
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