FreightWaves Market Expert Anthony Smith writes about the issues impacting the U.S. housing market. As important as these issues are, they have a ripple effect on other areas of the U.S. economy, including trucking.
Both new home sales and home starts showed some improvement in August, ending months of disappointing activity. Existing home sales failed to expand for the fifth straight month however, and housing in general remains a weak area for freight demand.
A package of weak data on both housing starts and home purchases indicates that housing and construction remains one of the few areas of weakness in the economy in the 3rd quarter. This has put some downward pressure on freight demand, as the movement of building materials, furniture, and appliances is influenced by the strength of the housing market.
