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U.S. NAHB housing market index rises in October

The U.S. NAHB housing market index rose in October, implying that homebuilder sentiment is strengthening after having slipped earlier in 2018. The headline index rose to 68, a level in line with further strong rises in homebuilding activity.

Homebuilders’ assessments of both present and future sales rose modestly in October, by one point each, to 74 and 75, respectively, both widely in line with the trend seen over the past six months. Homebuilders also recorded rebounds in traffic from prospective buyers, after this part of the survey had been weak for August and September.

The NAHB showed that homebuilders continued to feel more buoyant after the sustained fall in lumber prices in recent months after they had surged throughout 2017 and much of this year. Moreover, homebuilders believe that a combination of favourable economic conditions and demographic tailwinds should continue underpin demand.

“However, housing affordability has become a challenge because of ongoing price and interest rate increases and is likely to offset some of the boost from demand and demographics”, stated Barclays.

At 18:00 GMT the FxWirePro's Hourly Strength Index of US Dollar was neutral at -15.4273. For more details on FxWirePro's Currency Strength Index, visit http://www.fxwirepro.com/currencyindex

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