New home sales in US hits five-year high in June

Sales of new single-family houses in the US rose to a five-year high in June, which is evidence of sustained recovery of the housing market despite higher mortgage rates, the US Commerce Department said.

Sales increased 8.3%  from May to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 497,000 units, the highest since May 2008, Xinhua reported.

The median sale price of new houses sold in June was $249,700, up 7.4% from a year ago.

The seasonally adjusted estimate of new houses for sale at the end of June was 161,000 units, which represented a supply of 3.9 months at the current sales rate.

The US housing market has shown further signs of strength in recent months. Economists say new home sales, though accounting for a smaller share than existing home sales in the market, have an outsized impact on jobs and personal consumption.