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Weekly economic review & outlook The housing market cooled off this spring

June 28, 2021

You Need to Know

Week in review

Home sales drop again with low supply limiting transactions

Both new and existing home sales continued to fade in May from their recent peaks as rising prices and historically few homes for sale have taken some strength out of the market.

Personal income falls as government benefits sunset post-pandemic

While total personal income decreased again for May, wage income grew solidly while elevated saving rates should continue to boost spending by consumers.

Week Ahead

Forecasts

Very strong job gains expected for June

Riding the full reopening of the economy, nonfarm payrolls should rise by 870,000 for June – led by a further surge in hiring by service sector firms.

Manufacturing reading should improve further

The ISM manufacturing index is expected to rise for June with higher new orders and production even as supply shortages remain a concern.

Home sales fell again for May as a lack of supply and rising prices have slowed activity in recent months. Existing home sales dropped modestly for May to an annualized pace of 5.80 million units, the fourth consecutive monthly decline. New home sales were down, too, falling by 5.9 percent to an annualized pace of 769,000 units. Despite the recent retrenchment, these sales rates would still be the highest since 2006 in the pre-pandemic period.

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