U.S. Economy: New-Home Sales "Unexpectedly" Fall to Record Low

[Subdivisions]

Feb. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Sales of new homes in the U.S. unexpectedly fell in January to the lowest level on record, a sign that an extension of a government tax credit may not be enough to rekindle demand.

Purchases declined 11 percent to an annual pace of 309,000, below the lowest forecast in a Bloomberg News survey of economists, figures from the Commerce Department showed today in Washington. The median sales price dropped 2.4 percent from January 2009 and the supply of unsold homes increased.

The report underscores Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke’s comments today that the economy is in a “nascent” recovery still in need of low interest rates. Homebuilders face competition from foreclosed properties that have driven down prices at the same time companies are reluctant to create jobs.

“The foreclosure flow is robbing demand from the new-homes market, and that process seems to be strengthening,” said Julia Coronado, a senior economist at BNP Paribas in New York. “The new-homes market just can’t get off the floor. If new homes suffer, construction suffers and jobs suffer.”

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http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=acWCYvHlWvs8&pos=1

Why is it that nearly every economic report that comes out these days is characterized as being "unexpected", or some derivate of it? It is simply amazing to me the amount of reports like this coming out with the word "unexpected" associated with it. Doesn't ANYONE know what they're doing anymore? How can nearly everything be "unexpected"? Surely someone knows enough about this stuff so that it is not "unexpected". And when does "unexpected" become the norm, rather than the exception? Shoudn't an expected result now be considered "unexpected"?

I just don't get it.

[fascisthunter]

1. because they lie

if they don't know what they are doing, why aren't they being replaced and why are we still practicng the same economic shit over and over again. They know why, but the won't tell us, not outright. They don't have the balls.

[mdmc]

2. "Unexpectedly"

1. housing stock are over priced
2. credit is almost impossible to secure

Why would this be "Unexpectedly"