U.S. Economic News
June 20, 2018
U.S. Economic Indicators
Existing home sales edged down 0.4% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.43 million in May, and are 3.0% below year-ago levels. NAR said that rising mortgage rates and higher home prices are now pushing some buyers out of the market, and drastically low inventory means that this issue is unlikely to dissipate soon. NAR Report
U.S. News
Stephen Wilmot of the Wall Street Journal writes that while China cannot match the scale of the latest potential U.S. tariffs, China can retaliate against the U.S. in other ways. Wilmot writes that China could target specific industries with non-tariff barriers such as heightened regulations, or could block key U.S. companies from completing acquisitions of foreign firms. WSJ
According to the Wall Street Journal, President Trump’s newest round of tariffs on $200 billion of goods from China would likely hit consumers directly. Consumer products such as cell phones, computers, and apparel are the top three imports from China and would likely face duties if the U.S. moves ahead with this next round of tariffs. WSJ