US: Housing Price Index falls to -0.3% in May vs. +0.3% expected
- House prices in the US declined unexpectedly in May.
- US Dollar Index stays deep in red below 95.00 after the data.
The Housing Price Index (HPI) in the US declined to -0.3% in May, the Federal Housing Finance Agency's (FHFA) monthly report showed on Wednesday. This reading followed April's print of +0.1% (revised from +0.2%) and fell short of the market expectation of +0.3%. On a yearly basis, the Housing Price Index was up 4.9%.
Commenting on the data, “the May HPI results are based on contracts for sale signed in late March and throughout April, which was a period when many states announced stay-at-home orders, noted Dr Lynn Fisher, Deputy Director of the Division of Research and Statistics at FHFA. "The number of transactions powering the FHFA HPI in May was down by just over 30% compared to a year ago, reflecting the early effects of COVID-19 shutdowns.”
Market reaction
The US Dollar Index largely ignored this report and was last seen losing 0.28% on a daily basis at 94.88.
Author
Eren Sengezer
FXStreet
As an economist at heart, Eren Sengezer specializes in the assessment of the short-term and long-term impacts of macroeconomic data, central bank policies and political developments on financial assets.
