U.S. Housing Data Looms With 1.35M Starts Forecast as Fed Rate Concerns Shadow Markets
Updated
Updated · XTB · Aug 18
U.S. Housing Data Looms With 1.35M Starts Forecast as Fed Rate Concerns Shadow Markets
3 articles · Updated · XTB · Aug 18
Summary
U.S. housing reports due at 14:30 UTC are set to test whether weakness has spread into real estate, with housing starts seen at 1.35 million versus 1.42 million previously and permits steady at 1.37 million.
Those releases matter because recent U.S. data have softened while inflation remains elevated, leaving investors to judge whether housing is also deteriorating and how that could shape Federal Reserve expectations.
The same batch includes import prices, forecast to rise 0.1% after 0.3%, and pending home sales at 15:00 UTC, seen edging up 0.1% after a 5.4% drop.
Ahead of the data, oil prices were rising and the dollar remained weak, setting up potential volatility in the DXY, homebuilding shares and results from Home Depot and Toll Brothers.
Outside the U.S., Australia’s Westpac consumer confidence rebounded 6.0% and RBA officials kept a hawkish tone, while Asian equities stayed under pressure after disappointing Japanese GDP data.