MORTGAGE RATES LIFT HOME SALES 1.3% IN AUGUST

U.S. home sales rose 1.3% in August to the highest level in 17 months, with mortgage rates that are near historic lows spurring a rush of homebuying.

The National Association of Realtors announced Thursday that homes sold last month at a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 5.49 million units, the best performance since March 2018. Sales have increased 2.6% from a year ago.

The recent bump in home sales are a sign of U.S. consumers’ resilience despite a darkening outlook for growth. Cheaper borrowing costs have improved affordability for buyers, making them more eager to buy despite rising prices amid a shortage of properties for sale.

The median sales price climbed 4.7% from a year ago to $278,200, outpacing average wage gains.

Homebuyers have been a beneficiary from the recent economic uncertainty, as interest rates have fallen in response to slower global growth and President Donald Trump’s tariffs against China.

The 30-year mortgage rate averaged 3.73% this week, down from 4.65% a year ago, according to mortgage buyer Freddie Mac.

There were 1.86 million properties for sale at the end of August, down 2.6% from a year ago.

BAnkers expeCt slow eConomiC growth Amid U.S.-ChinA trAde wAr.

OMAHA» Bankers in rural parts of 10 Great Plains and Western states expect slow growth in the months ahead, but the ongoing trade war between the U.S. and China is weighing on the economy.

The Rural Mainstreet survey’s overall index climbed into positive territory at 50.1 in September from August’s 46.5. Any score above 50 suggests a growing economy, while a score below 50 indicates a shrinking economy.

Omaha-based Creighton University economist Ernie Goss, who oversees the survey, says bankers are less confident because of the ongoing trade disputes and the lack of approval for a new North American trade agreement.

The confidence index remained low at 42.9 in September — up slightly from August’s 42.

Bankers in Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wyoming were surveyed.

FrAnCe floAts tAriffs on U.S. goods in AirBus-Boeing dispute.

France’s finance minister says Europe is ready to impose retaliatory tariffs next year on U.S. goods as part of a long-running dispute over subsidies to aircraft producers Airbus and Boeing.

Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire told reporters Thursday that “trade wars are good for no one,” noting damage caused worldwide by the U.S.-China trade conflict.

But he said Europe is bracing for possible U.S. sanctions over the aircraft subsidy dispute, and that “Americans should know that we are ready to react.”

He said he is pushing for a “friendly agreement” with Robert Lightizer, the U.S. trade representative.

The World Trade Organization ruled in May that Europe illegally subsidized Airbus, hurting U.S. competitor Boeing. The European Union has brought a similar case at the WTO accusing the U.S. government of illegally subsidizing Boeing. — Denver Post wire services