US pending home sales for April -7.7% versus -0.6% expected

• Prior month +3.4%
• Pending home sales month on month change -7.7% versus -0.6% expected
• Pending home sales index 72.3 vs 78.2 last month
• Pending home sales -7.4% y/y vs +0.1% y/y prior

This is the largest drop in three years and shows that higher rates are biting. Rates rose from 6.9% at the end of March and rose to 7.7% by the end of the month. All regions show sharp declines, led by the south and midwest.

This article was written by Adam Button at www.forexlive.com.