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Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Existing Home Sales Dip 2.2%; Home Prices Plummet in August
Associated Press
A trade group for real estate agents says sales of existing homes fell by 2.2% in August, but the number of unsold homes on the market also dropped sharply from the previous month's record high.
The National Association of Realtors says sales fell to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.91 million units, from an upwardly revised pace of 5.02 million in July. Sales had been expected to fall by 1.6%, according to economists surveyed by Thomson/IFR.
There were 4.2 million unsold homes on the market, a 7% drop from the record set in July. It was the steepest drop in inventory since December 2006.
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If you've seen TV footage of an active trading pit, you've probably noticed the atmosphere is uproarious and wild. The reason for all the shouting? Open outcry.
On exchange floors that use the open-outcry system, traders shout prices they want to sell while others yell back the price they want to buy at. They also use hand gestures to communicate with each other.
This system has been used for a long time, but is being replaced with modern technology. Some argue electronic exchanges can do the job faster and more accurately. One of the few exchanges that continue to use open outcry is the New York Mercantile Exchange.
