US DATA: Oct NAR pending home sales index +10.4% to 89.3, better
than the -1% expected. The index remains 20.5% below 112.4 in Oct-09
when first-time buyers used the tax credit. The data reflects contracts
and not closings, which normally occur with a lag time of one or two
months, and thus suggests a gain in sales. The PHSI in the Northeast
jumped 19.6 percent to 71.3 in October but is 27.3 percent below the tax
credit peak in October 2009. In the Midwest the index surged 27.3
percent in October to 81.7 but is 24.8 percent below a year ago.
Pending home sales in the South rose 7.1 percent to an index of 93.8 but
are 18.4 percent below October 2009. In the West the index slipped 0.4
percent to 104.3 and is 15.6 percent below a year ago.