US existing home sales rose to a six-month high in October as consumers were lured into buying property by low mortgage rates Sales of previously owned homes increased 6.1pc to a 5.77 million annual rate, the National Association of Realtors said. This was the highest reading for existing home sales since April Economists had forecast a decline in existing home sales to 5.39 million units from September's 5.4 million rate.
The US Federal Reserve slashed its federal funds rate by 50 basis points to 1.25pc last month, having held rates unchanged for the previous nine months. The National Association of Realtors expects that a record number of homes will be sold this year, exceeding the 5.3 million level set in 2001 The report is considered a relatively reliable indicator of activity in the housing sector since, unlike housing starts, the sales report registers final demand rather than supply. New home sales data for October will be published tomorrow afternoon //www.fxcentre.com