BUYING SPREE SHOWS NO LETUP; DURABLE GOODS, HOME SALES HOT.Byline: Jeannine Aversa Associated Press Associated Press: see news agency. Associated Press (AP) Cooperative news agency, the oldest and largest in the U.S. and long the largest in the world. Orders for big-ticket manufactured goods manufactured goods npl → manufacturas fpl; bienes mpl manufacturados manufactured goods npl → produits manufacturés vaulted ahead in July, and it was the third biggest month ever for sales of previously owned homes despite rising mortgage rates. The two reports released Wednesday reflected a still-booming economy, powered by strong consumer spending Consumer demand or consumption is also known as personal consumption expenditure. It is the largest part of aggregate demand or effective demand at the macroeconomic level. and low unemployment, economists said. The reports came one day after the Federal Reserve bumped up interest rates for the second time this summer in an effort to cool the economy and prevent an outbreak of inflation. The Commerce Department reported that orders for durable goods durable goods Goods, such as appliances and automobiles, that have a useful life over a number of periods. Firms that produce durable goods are often subject to wide fluctuations in sales and profits. Also called consumer durables. , items expected to last at least three years, rose 3.3 percent last month to a seasonally adjusted Seasonally adjusted Mathematically adjusted by moderating a macroeconomic indicator (e.g., oil prices/imports) so that relative comparisons can be drawn from month to month all year. $204 billion. That increase was more than expected and the biggest since December 1998, when orders went up by 3.4 percent. The new increase came after a 0.5 percent gain in June, larger than the government initially reported. First Union's chief economist The Chief Economist is a single position job class having primary responsibility for the development, coordination, and production of economic and financial analysis. It is distinguished from the other economist positions by the broader scope of responsibility encompassing the David Orr said the durable-goods report confirmed the continued rebound for American manufacturers, who have been battered by a global financial crisis that has cut sharply into their overseas sales and also opened them up to stiffer competition from cheaper imports. Meanwhile, the National Association of Realtors The National Association of Realtors (NAR) is made up of residential and commercial realtors who are brokers, salespeople, property managers, appraisers, and counselors, and others working in the real estate industry. reported that sales of single-family homes declined 3.9 percent in July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.41 million units after a record high the month before. Even with the decrease, sales in July were at the third-highest level ever, the association said. In California, the median price for a single-family home in July was $222,010, a 5.3 percent increase from the year before, according to the California Association of Realtors. Escrow closed on about 710,800 home sales, a 7 percent increase. The median home price last month in Los Angeles County was $205,590, up 0.5 percent from the previous year, while sales activity decreased 1.3 percent over the same period. ``Overall conditions are still excellent for home buyers, but the recent upswing in interest rates may have discouraged some from buying,'' said James Smith, the national association's chief economist. In July, the monthly average interest rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage was 7.63 percent, compared with 7.55 percent in June. |
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