Steel Markets
Home Price Gains Continue to Cool
Written by Sandy Williams
June 26, 2019
Home price gains continued to weaken in April, according to the latest S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Indices. The National Home Price NSA index gained 3.5 percent year-over-year compared to 3.7 percent the previous month. The 20-City composite was nearly flat with March, down 0.1 percent to post a 2.5 percent gain. Annual growth has slowed in each of the last 13 months.
Among the 20 cities surveyed, Las Vegas, Phoenix and Tampa reported the highest year-over-year gains at 7.2 percent, 6.0 percent and 5.6 percent, respectively. Nine of the 20 cities reported greater price increases in the year ending April 2019 versus the year ending March 2019.
“Home price gains continued in a trend of broad-based moderation,” says Philip Murphy, Managing Director and Global Head of Index Governance at S&P Dow Jones Indices. “Year-over-year price gains remain positive in most cities, though at diminishing rates of change. Seattle is a notable exception, where the YOY change has decreased from 13.1 percent in April 2018 to 0.0 percent in April 2019.”
Affordability still is a concern for buyers despite lower mortgage rates. Additionally, housing inventory is on an upward trend, suggesting weaker demand, he added.
“Perhaps the trend for the moment is toward normalization around the real long-run average annual price increase,” said Murphy. “Comparing the YOY National Index nominal change of 3.5 percent to April’s inflation rate of 2.0 percent yields a real house price change of 1.5 percent – edging closer to the real long-run average of 1.2 percent cited by [S&P Chairman] David Blitzer last month.”
Sandy Williams
Read more from Sandy WilliamsLatest in Steel Markets
Latin America’s steel industry grapples with declining demand, rising imports
With climbing imports and falling consumption, the Latin American steel industry has had a challenging 2024, according to an Alacero report.
CRU: Trump tariffs could stimulate steel demand
Now that the dust has settled from the US election, as have the immediate reactions in the equity, bond, and commodity markets, this is a prime opportunity to look at how a second Trump presidency might affect the US steel market.
HVAC shipments slip in September but are still trending higher
Following a strong August, total heating and cooling equipment shipments eased in September to a five-month low, according to the latest data from the Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI).
GrafTech Q3 loss widens as electrode demand remains soft
GrafTech International’s third-quarter net loss increased from last year, with the company anticipating continuing weakness in near-term demand for graphite electrodes.
Cliffs forecasts 2025 rebound after Q3’s weakest demand since Covid
The negative impact of high interest rates on consumer behavior, particularly in the automotive and housing sectors, was the primary driver of the demand weakness seen across the third quarter, according to Cleveland-Cliffs executives.