A public display of feelings, with 21% in favor of the war? I don't see it. Patriots, mired in debt, have been unable to do the most patriotic thing and go shopping confidently:
***** New Home Sales Fall 8 Pct. in February Wed March 26, 2003 12:01 PM ET By Mark Felsenthal
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Purchases of new homes fell 8.1 percent in February to their lowest level in more than two years, the government said on Wednesday, the second straight monthly decline in spite of some of the lowest mortgage interest rates since the early 1960s.
New home sales slid to a seasonally adjusted 854,00 unit annual rate last month from an upwardly revised 929,000 unit clip in January. January's sales level marked a 12.6 percent drop from December.
Although an unusually cold and snowy month may have kept buyers indoors, sales fell well short of the expectations of analysts polled by Reuters, who on average had forecast a rise to a 935,000 unit sales pace.
Consumer worries about the state of the economy and the U.S.-led war on Iraq may now outweigh the appeal of cheap loans, one analyst said.
"This weakening in February, while it may have some special considerations, is also a harbinger of some weaker numbers to come. It doesn't look like there's anything positive out there in terms of consumer confidence and the war with Iraq," said Fred Breimyer, chief economist for State Street Corp.
Americans bought new homes at the slowest rate in February since August 2000, the Commerce Department said.
Inventories rose to the highest level in more than six years. The time it would take to sell homes on the market at current sales rates rose to 5 months from 4.5 months in January....
<http://asia.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=businessNews&storyID=2453263> *****
***** US consumer confidence declines again By Peronet Despeignes in Washington Published: March 25 2003 15:33 | Last Updated: March 25 2003 15:33
US consumer confidence fell to a new nine-year low in the days leading to the beginning of the US war with Iraq, according to figures released on Tuesday.
The Conference Board said its index of consumer confidence fell to a preliminary 62.5 in March, the lowest reading since October 1993. The index, which is based on a monthly survey of 5,000 households, has fallen more than 40 per cent from last year's high of 110.3 in May.
The Board said it was hopeful that a quick resolution of the war with Iraq would lead to a rebound in confidence, but that the course of the job market would determine whether it would last.
While a quick and successful outcome in the Middle East conflict would certainly ease some of the uncertainties facing consumers and therefore boost confidence, it is the economic fundamentals that will determine whether a rebound is sustainable,? says Lynn Franco, a Board official.
The end of the Gulf War in 1991 produced a surge in confidence, but labour market conditions quickly diminished the spark. So if history repeats itself, the current job scenario will do little to maintain any post-war surge in confidence....
***** New York Times March 26, 2003 Home Equity Borrowing Rises to Worrisome Levels By RIVA D. ATLAS
Americans are borrowing against their homes at unprecedented levels, leading some bankruptcy lawyers and consumer advocates to warn that many people could wind up losing their houses.
Homeowners raised $130 billion last year through home equity loans and lines of credit, nearly double the total a year earlier, according to the Federal Reserve.
This boom in borrowing comes at a time when housing prices nationwide are still strong, even in places like the New York metropolitan area where prices have risen sharply.
As long as their home values rise, borrowers who are having trouble making their payments can take out further loans or can sell their homes for more than they owe. Indeed, people have not fallen behind on their home equity loans nationwide in troubling numbers.
But in parts of the Midwest and the Southeast where home prices have softened, delinquencies on home equity debt have started to rise, and bankruptcy lawyers are reporting that a growing number of their clients are losing their homes to the banks.
"I'm representing a large number of newly homeless people," said Barbara May, a bankruptcy lawyer in St. Paul. Many of these people have taken on home equity loans in addition to their existing mortgages.
"We are just buried in foreclosures," she said.
Bankruptcy lawyers warn that the problem could spread to other parts of the country if home prices soften or if the economy does not improve....
<http://www.nytimes.com/2003/03/26/business/26HOME.html> ***** -- Yoshie
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