Home Prices Climb in July, Consumer Confidence Slips, And Markets Flat Despite Fed Decision

Home prices in 20 major U.S. metropolitan areas rose 1.8% from June to July on a non-seasonally adjusted basis, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller home price report. Economists expected the gauge to rise 2%. Prices were up 12.4% from the same month in 2012.

Even though home prices missed expectation, their gain from a year ago was the strongest in more than seven years, a closely watched survey showed on Tuesday.

The S&P/Case Shiller composite index of 20 metropolitan areas rose 0.6 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis, compared to economists’ forecasts for a 0.8 percent gain. Prices rose 0.9 percent in June.

Compared to a year earlier, prices were up 12.4%, matching economists’ expectations and marking the strongest rise since February 2006. Prices were up 12.1% in the year to June.

The report suggested the housing sector continues to recover slowly despite a recent rise in mortgage costs. Prices in all 20 cities rose on a non-seasonally adjusted yearly basis, led by a 27.5 percent surge in Las Vegas and followed closely by a 24.8 percent gain in San Francisco.

Today’s Markets

Enthusiasm over the Federal Reserve’s move to not begin the process of exiting its massive bond-buying program has been waning over the past several sessions. Indeed, the markets closed out the day on Monday at just about the levels they were ahead of the Fed’s policy-setting meeting last week.

“We’ve either reached a point where the market can’t keep using the same excuse to rally with the same effectiveness or we assume that the taper is coming soon anyway,” Peter Boockvar, chief market analyst at The Lindsey Group wrote in an email to clients, calling recent trading “unusual action.

In commodities, U.S. crude oil futures slid $1.72, or 1.6%, to $104.67 a barrel. Wholesale New York Harbor gasoline dipped 0.06% to $2.621 a gallon. Gold dropped $12.80, or 0.96%, to $1,314 a troy ounce.

The Conference Board reports consumer confidence slipped to 79.7 in September from 81.8 the month prior. Economists expected the gauge to fall slightly to 79.9.