The Latest Housing Data Is Bad News for People Predicting Recession

While some think a recession could be looming for the U.S., fresh housing data says the opposite.

Purchases of new U.S. single-family homes just hit their highest level in more than eight years, representing what Wall Street is calling a strong market.

"Today's report confirms the considerable strength in the housing market over the past few months," Rob Martin, an economist at Barclays Plc, said in a note. "We expect housing to continue to firm, on average, over the medium term, with a buoyant household sector supporting both prices and volumes."

George Pearkes, a strategist at Bespoke Investment Group, also pointed out an encouraging trend for the housing market. He said the data is the exact opposite of what would be expected leading up to an economic downturn. Note in the chart that before every recession for the last several decades, new home sales were either flat or in decline. This time they're heading in the exact opposite direction.

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http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-07-26/the-latest-housing-data-is-bad-news-for-people-predicting-recession