Free Republic

Per CNBC TV.

WASHINGTON -- New requests for unemployment benefits fell sharply last week after rising in the past three weeks. Still, claims remain much higher than they would be in a healthy economy. The Labor Department said new claims for jobless aid dropped by 31,000 to a seasonally adjusted 473,000. Wall Street economists had expected a smaller drop, according to surveys by Thomson Reuters. And the total unemployment benefit rolls are still climbing, as more people join extended unemployment aid programs that were renewed last month by Congress.

WASHINGTON (AP) - Sales of new homes dropped sharply last month to the slowest pace on record, the latest sign that the economic recovery is fading. The Commerce Department says new home sales fell 12.4 percent in July from a month earlier to a seasonally adjusted annual sales pace of 276,600. That was the slowest pace on records dating back to 1963.

"New orders for long-lasting U.S. manufactured goods rose far less than expected in July and, excluding transportation equipment, posted their largest decline in 1-1/2 years, according to a government report on Wednesday that pointed to a slowdown in manufacturing." "The Commerce Department said durable goods orders rose 0.3 percent after a revised 0.1 percent fall in June. Excluding transportation, orders dropped 3.8 percent—the biggest fall since January 2009—after rising 0.2 percent in June." "Analysts polled by Reuters had forecast orders increasing 2.8 percent last month from June's previously reported 1.2 percent fall."

NEW HOME SALES PLUNGE 12.4% (Unexpected) Gregory White Aug. 25, 2010, 10:00 AM New home sales numbers came in lower than expected, down to an annualized 276,000. That's a 12.4% drop over June, and a 32.4% drop over July 2009. Markets fell immediately on the news, but have rebounded somewhat: Dow down 0.62% NASDAQ down 0.61% S&P 500 down 0.82% The consensus was for a slight improvement over June, at 340,000 annualized. June home sales were an annualized 330,000, while May was at 267,000. New home sales increased in June 23.6%, after falling 36.7% in May. This comes after yesterday's...