New-home sales fall 6.6% in June

Sales of new U.S. homes dropped more than expected in June, while orders for long-lasting U.S.-made goods were weaker than analysts forecast, according to reports Thursday that raised fresh concerns about the economy.

“The U.S. business sector may not be providing as much of a sturdy offset to the weak housing sector as expected,” said Sherry Cooper, chief economist at BMO Capital Markets.

Orders for U.S.-made durable goods rose 1.4% in June, the Commerce Department reported, but they were less than Wall Street expectations for a 1.8% gain, and a measure of business spending in the data fell unexpectedly.

Separate Commerce Department data showed continued weakness in the housing sector, with new single-family home sales falling 6.6% in June to a lower-than-expected level, leaving a bloated inventory of unsold homes.

Analysts were expecting to see a rise in economic output during the second quarter, primarily as businesses rebuilt inventories, but going forward growth is likely to moderate.

The Labor Department reported that U.S. unemployment benefits fell unexpectedly by 2,000 last week to the lowest level since May.

But that employment figure did little to sooth investors considering the disappointing durable goods data in a climate of fear that credit could be drying up.

The rise in new orders for goods meant to last at least three years was lifted by an increase in nondefense aircraft orders. A 43% surge in orders at Boeing Co. was what helped boost overall durable goods orders, economists said.

But within that Commerce report, nondefense capital goods orders excluding aircraft fell 0.7%, well below economists’ expectations for a 0.8% gain.

Investors found some solace in the Labor Department report showing that initial claims for state unemployment benefits fell to 301,000 in the week that ended July 21 from an upwardly revised 303,000 the previous week. It was the third week of declines.

That marked the lowest level of weekly initial jobless claims since May 12 and was below expectations for a reading of 310,000.

The government’s latest data pointed to continued troubles in the housing sector as new single-family home sales in June fell to an annual rate of 834,000, well below the 895,000 sales rate Wall Street analysts were expecting.

The median sale price of a new home fell 1.3% to $237,900 from $241,000 in May.