Investing.com - Pending home sales in the U.S. rose slightly more than expected in March, easing concerns over the health of the housing sector, industry data showed on Wednesday.
In a report, the National Association of Realtors said its pending home sales index increased by a seasonally adjusted 1.1% last month, compared to expectations for a 1.0% gain.
Pending home sales in February rose by 3.6%, whose figure was revised up from a previously reported gain of 3.1%.
Year-on-year, pending home sales rose at annualized rate of 11.1% in March, above forecasts for an increase of 5.1% and following a gain of 12.0% in February.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, says contract signings picked up in March as more buyers than usual entered this year's competitive spring market.
"Demand appears to be stronger in several parts of the country, especially in metro areas that have seen solid job gains and firmer economic growth over the past year," he said.
EUR/USD was trading at 1.1085 from around 1.1078 ahead of the release of the data, GBP/USD was at 1.5424 from 1.5414 earlier, while USD/JPY was at 118.98 from 119.05 earlier.
The US dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six major rivals, was at 95.42, compared to 95.47 ahead of the report.
Meanwhile, U.S. stock markets were lower after the open. The Dow 30 shed 0.25%, the S&P 500 dipped 0.2%, while the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.1%.
Elsewhere, in the commodities market, gold futures traded at $1,209.20 a troy ounce, compared to $1,208.80 ahead of the data, while crude oil traded at $57.27 a barrel from $57.31 earlier.