In the News

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Retail sales rose 0.6% to $421.1 billion in May. This follows a 0.1% increase in April. Compared to May 2012, retail sales have increased 4.3%.

Wholesalers increased their inventories 0.2% to $504.8 billion in April. Sales at the wholesale level rose 0.5% to $416.6 billion in April. On a year-over-year basis, sales were 0.7% higher than April 2012. The seasonally adjusted wholesale inventories/sales ratio in April was 1.21.

The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted composite index of mortgage applications for the week ending June 7 rose 5%. Purchase volume rose 5%. Refinancing applications also increased 5%.

The Reuters/University of Michigan consumer sentiment index for June's preliminary reading fell to 82.7 from 84.5 in May, which was the highest reading since July 2007.

Industrial production at the nation's factories, mines and utilities was unchanged in May after a 0.4% decrease in April. Compared to May 2012, industrial production has increased 1.6%. Capacity utilization fell to 77.6% in May from 77.7% in April.

The producer price index, which tracks wholesale price inflation, rose 0.5% in May, following a 0.7% decrease in April. On a year-over-year basis, wholesale prices were up 1.7% in May. Core prices — excluding food and fuel — rose 0.1% in May.

Initial claims for unemployment benefits for the week ending June 8 fell by 12,000 to 334,000. Continuing claims for the week ending June 1 rose by 2,000 to 2.952 million. The less volatile four-week average of claims for unemployment benefits was 345,250.

Upcoming on the economic calendar are reports on the housing market index on June 17, housing starts on June 18 and existing home sales on June 20.

Obama Administration Releases May Housing Scorecard

​Quarterly Servicer Assessments Show Mortgage Servicers Demonstrate Continued Improvement in Implementation of the Making Home Affordable Program, Now Extended through 2015

 

WASHINGTON- The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Department of the Treasury today released the May edition of the Obama Administration's Housing Scorecard – a comprehensive report on the nation’s housing market. Data continue to show important progress across many key indicators— as the annual home price increase is the highest since the housing bubble burst in mid-2006 and purchases of new and existing homes remain strong—although officials caution that a full housing recovery will take more time. The Housing Scorecard is available online at www.hud.gov/scorecard.

“As the May housing scorecard indicates, the Obama Administration’s policies and actions over the last four years to speed housing recovery are continuing to show important signs of progress,” said HUD Deputy Assistant Secretary for Economic Affairs Kurt Usowski. “In the first quarter of 2013, homeowners’ equity grew by more than $815 billion, reaching its highest level since the first quarter of 2008. Despite the positive news, we have important work ahead since there are so many families and individuals still ‘underwater’ with mortgage balances higher than their home’s value.”

Included in this month’s Making Home Affordable Program Report are detailed assessments for the largest mortgage servicers participating in the program evaluating their performance for the first quarter of 2013. These Servicer Assessments – first issued in June 2011 and published quarterly – show that servicers continue to focus attention on areas identified in previous program reviews, resulting in improved program implementation and better outcomes for homeowners. Last week, the Administration announced an extension of the Making Home Affordable Program – which includes the Home Affordable Modification Program or HAMP – through December 31, 2015. The Making Home Affordable Program is a critical part of the Administration’s efforts to fuel the housing recovery and help homeowners avoid foreclosure.

“We have kept the pressure on the mortgage industry to step up its efforts, which has helped millions of families access relief in a historic housing crisis,” said Treasury Assistant Secretary for Financial Stability Tim Massad. “Making Home Affordable provides standards and accountability for the mortgage industry that will now help additional homeowners avoid foreclosure through 2015.”

Since inception of the Making Home Affordable Program, Treasury has required participating servicers to take specific actions to improve their processes through ongoing program reviews. The quarterly Servicer Assessments summarize performance in three categories of program implementation: identifying and contacting homeowners; homeowner evaluation and assistance; and program reporting, management and governance. Results for the first quarter of 2013 show that, although servicer performance can fluctuate from quarter to quarter, servicers are demonstrating continued improvement in program implementation, including:

 

The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller 20-city housing price index — on a non-seasonally adjusted basis — rose 1.1% in March after a 1.3% increase in February. On a year-over-year basis, when compared with March 2012, prices rose 10.9%, the first double-digit annual gain since May 2006.

The consumer confidence index reached a five-year high at 76.2 in May from a revised 69 in April. The index was benchmarked at 100 in 1985, a year chosen because it was neither a peak nor a trough in consumer confidence.

Pending home sales, a forward-looking indicator based on signed contracts, rose 0.3% in April after a 1.5% increase in March. On a year-over-year basis, pending home sales were 10.3% higher than April 2012.

The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted composite index of mortgage applications for the week ending May 24 fell 8.8%. Purchase volume fell 3%. Refinancing applications decreased 12%.

The Commerce Department announced that gross domestic product — the total output of goods and services produced in the U.S. — increased at a revised annual rate of 2.4% in the first quarter of 2013, compared to the initial estimate of a 2.5% increase.

Retail sales fell 0.9% for the week ending May 25, according to the ICSC-Goldman Sachs index. On a year-over-year basis, retailers saw sales increase 2.8%.

Initial claims for unemployment benefits for the week ending May 25 rose by 10,000 to 354,000. Continuing claims for the week ending May 18 rose by 63,000 to 2.986 million. The less volatile four-week average of claims for unemployment benefits was 347,250.

Upcoming on the economic calendar are reports on construction spending on June 3 and factory orders on June 5.