(RTTNews) - A report released by the National Association of Realtors on Thursday showed a sharp pullback by existing home sales in the U.S. in the month March.
NAR said existing home sales plunged by 4.3 percent to an annual rate of 4.19 million in March after surging by 9.5 percent to a rate of 4.38 million in February. Economists had expected existing home sales to slump to a rate of 4.20 million.
The pullback by existing home sales partly reflected weakness in the West and South, where existing home sales plummeted by 8.2 percent and 5.9 percent, respectively.
Existing home sales in the Midwest also tumbled by 1.9 percent, while existing home sales in the Northeast surged by 4.2 percent.
