Pending home sales in the US rose unexpectedly in November, boosting optimism about the health of the housing sector, according to industry data Wednesday.
In a report, the National Association of Realtors said that the pending home sales index rose 0.2% last month, compared to expectations of a 0.4% drop.
The reading on the same index rose to 109.5 from the previous 109.3 reading. This was the highest reading since June.
Pending home sales rose at an annual rate of 0.8% in November, year on year.
Larry Yoon, chief economist at the National Association of Realtors, said the signing of the contracts made little gains in November and made an annual gain for the first time since June.
Yun said the housing market has been boosted by strong job creation and strong economy.
"But new buyers coming to the market quickly find that their options are limited and competition is strong."
"Real estate brokers say many potential buyers early this year, suffering from low supply and high prices, are still trying to buy a home."
According to Leon, one of the most important questions to be addressed to 2018 is whether low levels of supply available could be improved enough to slow down price growth and make home buying more affordable.
After the release of the report, released in conjunction with consumer confidence in December, the EUR / USD traded at 1.1902 from around 1.1904 before the report; GBP / USD was at 1.3410 from 1.3415 earlier; while USD / JPY was at 113.29 From 113.31 earlier.
The dollar index, which tracks the dollar against a basket of six of its major rivals, traded at 92.57 versus 92.58 before it was released.
At the same time, US equity markets were trading slightly after the opening. The Dow rose 30 points to 12 points or 0.05%, and the S & P 500 gained 3 points or 0.12%, while the Nasdaq Composite Index gained 17 points, or 0.25%.
While in the commodity market, the price of gold futures did not change from $ 1,289.90 per ounce, while crude oil traded at $ 59.80 a barrel from $ 59.72 earlier.
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