Weekly economic review & outlook
The economic downturn sharply slows spring homebuying
You Need to Know
Week in review
Home sales off sharply in March as the shutdown hits
New and existing home sales dropped as activity stopped in the second half of the month with worse figures likely for April.
Surveys show deep business contraction
The flash estimates for the Markit manufacturing and services PMIs fell to shocking lows in April.
Week Ahead
Forecasts
Q1 GDP expected to decline, showing the recession start
After a solid first two months of the year, the economic shutdown starting around mid-March likely resulted in negative first quarter growth.
ISM manufacturing index set for dramatic decline
The near shutdown of the world economy in an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19 should cause a massive drop in the ISM manufacturing index.
Homebuyer traffic fell sharply in the second half of March as job losses mounted and governments mandated stay-at-home policies and social distancing measures. New home sales declined by 15.4 percent for the month, led by sharp drops in the Northeast and West regions where stay-in-place orders were enacted earlier. With the shutdown impacting nearly all states for April, sales activity will likely fall further this month.
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