In the US session Consumer Confidence and New Home Sales data releases. U.S consumer confidence fell in September and home sales dropped to an eight-month low in August due to the impact of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, supporting the view that the storms would hurt economic growth in the third quarter. The economy, however, remains on solid ground as other data on Tuesday showed a strong increase in house prices in July. The Conference Board said its consumer confidence index declined to a reading of 119.8 this month from 120.4 in August, which was the highest reading in five months. It said confidence in Texas and Florida “decreased considerably.”
Commerce Department said new home sales decreased 3.4 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 560,000 units last month, which was the lowest level since December 2016. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast new home sales, which account for 9.5 percent of overall home sales, rising 3.3 percent to a pace of 588,000 units last month.New home sales, which are drawn from permits, are volatile on a month-to-month basis. Sales were down 1.2 percent on a year-on-year basis in August. The Commerce Department suggested Harvey and Irma likely impacted new home sales data last month.
There will be no major data releases from Australia tomorrow. In the US session, Durable Goods figures were released. Analysts expect 1.1% increase.
Figures to watch:
Durable Goods Orders (Wednesday 14:30)
