"Today's report is consistent with our forecast for a 29 percent increase in total housing starts this year, which would mark the first time since 2007 that starts have topped the 1 million mark"
-David Crowe, NAHB Chief Economist
The Empire State Manufacturing Survey shows that conditions for New York manufacturers improved moderately in June, reaching a three-month high. In the report, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York said that the general business conditions index increased to 7.8 from –1.4 in May, whereas economists expected the reading to improve to flat. A reading above the 0.0 threshold indicates improving conditions, while below shows deteriorating conditions. However, the majority of other indicators declined. The new orders index fell six points to –6.7, the shipments index slipped 12 points to –11.8, and the unfilled orders index decreased eight points to –14.5. Moreover, indexes for the six-month outlook fell, indicating that optimism about future conditions continued to ebb.
Meanwhile, the NAHB housing market index for June rose to 52, the highest level since April 2006, surpassing expectations for an increase to 45 from 44 in May. The NAHB housing market index is a sentiment index, in which respondents evaluate not only the housing market but also the economic health in general.
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