US builders set for more good news on sales – New York Report
HOUSING stocks rallied on Friday and the industry group should get more good news next week, though sustained and robust future gains may depend on wage growth and other signs of improving home affordability.
The National Association of Realtors is today expected to report strong growth in existing home sales for May, similarly to UK data.
The data is expected to show existing home sales climbing 4.4 per cent in May after falling 3.3 per cent in April.
Meanwhile on Wednesday, Lennar, the second biggest US homebuilder is expected to report that it had a strong second quarter.
The housing recovery has been uneven. US permits for future home construction surged to a near eight-year high in May, a sign of a buildup of momentum, but housing starts fell.
Permits were driven by multi-family construction plans, which jumped 24.9 per cent, while single-family permits, the largest share of the market, increased only 2.6 per cent.
Lennar is expected to report an 11 per cent increase in revenue and an almost seven per cent increase in earnings per share.
The other S&P 500 homebuilders — D.R. Horton and PulteGroup are expected to post sharp gains in quarterly earnings from a year ago, Thomson Reuters data showed.
Meanwhile, this week will also see updates from Accenture, Barnes & Noble, Bed Bath & Beyond and Monsanto.