There were tentative signs that America’s housing crash may be bottoming out. Sales of newly built homes rose by 2.4% in July, although the levels of sales in May and June were also revised down. The stock of unsold new homes fell to 10.1 months of sales from 10.7 months in June. Sales of existing homes rose by 3.1% in July. The S&P/Case-Shiller national home-price index fell by 15.4% in the year to second quarter, a bit more than the 14.2% annual drop in the first quarter.
The omens for America’s economy look a little less grim too. Orders for durable goods rose by 1.3% in July, building on a similar increase in June. The pick-up was led by demand for capital goods. The index of consumer confidence compiled by the Conference Board, a business-research group, rose to a three-month high in August.
The outlook for the euro-area economy, meanwhile, continues to darken. The index of German business sentiment published by Ifo, a Munich-based research firm, fell sharply in August. Orders for industrial goods in the euro area declined by a further 0.3% in June, after a 5.4% plunge in May.
In Britain the number of loans approved for house purchases was broadly flat in July, according to the British Bankers' Association, leaving them 65% lower than a year earlier.
Thailand’s central bank raised its benchmark interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point, to 3.75%, the second increase in as many months.