Pending U.S. Home Resales, Construction Spending Climb in Sign of Recovery‏

This is great news!!!!

May 4 (Bloomberg) -- Pending sales of U.S. existing homes posted their first back-to-back gain in almost a year in March and construction spending ended a six-month slide, spurring a rally in stocks and sell-off in Treasuries. The number of Americans signing contracts to buy previously owned homes jumped 3.2 percent after a 2 percent gain in February, the National Association of Realtors said today in Washington.

Construction unexpectedly rose 0.3 percent as gains in commercial and government projects overshadowed a continued drop in homebuilding, Commerce Department data showed. Benchmark stock indexes climbed to levels unseen since January, and Treasuries fell for a fifth day, after the reports underscored that the worst of the recession is past.

Shares of builders including Hovnanian Enterprises Inc., Lennar Corp. and Pulte Homes Inc. rallied on optimism the four-year housing slump will end this year. “People are worrying a bit less about a depression and starting to see signs of recovery,” said James O’Sullivan, a senior economist at UBS Securities LLC in Stamford, Connecticut.