ECONOMIC UPDATES

Last Week in the News

Retail sales fell 0.7% for the week ending June 18, according to the ICSC-Goldman Sachs index. On a year-over-year basis, retailers saw sales increase 2.2%.

 

Existing home sales fell 3.8% in May to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.81 million units from a revised 5 million units in April. The inventory of unsold homes on the market decreased 1% to 3.72 million, a 9.3-month supply at the current sales pace, up from a 9-month supply in April.

New home sales fell 2.1% in May to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 319,000 units from an upwardly revised rate of 326,000 units in April. Economists had expected a pace of 305,000 units in May.

The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted composite index of mortgage applications for the week ending June 17 fell 5.9%. Refinancing applications decreased 7.2%. Purchase volume fell 2.8%.

Orders for durable goods — items expected to last three or more years — rose 1.9% in May after a revised 2.7% decrease in April. Excluding volatile transportation-related goods, orders posted a monthly increase of 0.6%.

In its third and final report for the first quarter of 2011, the Commerce Department announced that gross domestic product — the total output of goods and services produced in the U.S. — increased at an annual rate of 1.9%. This follows a 3.1% pace of growth in the fourth quarter of 2010.

Initial claims for unemployment benefits rose by 9,000 to 429,000 for the week ending June 18. Continuing claims for the week ending June 11 fell by 1,000 to 3.7 million.

Upcoming on the economic calendar are reports on pending home sales on June 29 and construction spending on July 1.

Provided by:

Judy Haller

Prospect Mortgage

3985 Prince William Co. Pkwy., Suite 104

Woodbridge, VA 22192

Office: (703) 590-7132