US Construction Spending Rises 0.4% in April, Beats Expectations
Summary
US construction spending increased 0.4% in April, surpassing the 0.2% forecast, driven by a 0.8% rise in residential construction, particularly single-family homebuilding. This positive data point for the construction sector provides a nuanced view of the housing market, contrasting with recent reports of declining housing starts and new home sales for April. However, the report also highlights that rising mortgage rates, which reached a nine-month high of 6.53% last week according to Freddie Mac data, continue to weigh on overall housing demand and builder activity, posing ongoing challenges for mortgage finance companies like Freddie Mac.
At the time of this announcement, FMCC was trading at $6.26 on OTC in the Real Estate & Construction sector, with a market capitalization of approximately $4.1B. The 52-week trading range was $3.40 to $14.99. This news item was assessed with positive market sentiment and an importance score of 7 out of 10. Source: Reuters.