Investing.com - U.S. new home sales rose less than expected in January, although they recovered from a sharp drop at the end of 2016, official data showed on Friday.
In a report, the U.S. Commerce Department said new home sales rose by 3.7% to a seasonally adjusted 555,000 units in January from the prior month’s revised reading of 535,000 (initially 536,000).
Analysts had expected a 6.3% increase from the previous month’s initial reading to a total of 570,000 units in January.
Immediately following the report, which was released simultaneously with the revision to the February Michigan consumer sentiment, EUR/USD traded at 1.0576, compared to 1.0571 before the data, GBP/USD was at 1.2516 from 1.2505 earlier, while USD/JPY was at 112.32, compared to the prior 112.44.
The US dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six major rivals, was at 100.97, compared to 101.06 ahead of the report.
Meanwhile, U.S. stocks were trading lower after the open as the Dow 30 fell 32 points, or 0.16%, the S&P 500 lost 6 points, or 0.24% , while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite traded down 19 points, or 0.32%.
Elsewhere, in the commodities market, gold futures traded at $1,256.05 a troy ounce, compared to $1,253.55 ahead of the data, while crude oil traded at $54.21 a barrel from $54.01 earlier.