As weekly jobless claims are posting their biggest decline in almost a year and home sales surged as 2010 came to an end, the economic recovery is showing signs that it has staying power.
December sales of previously owned homes jumped to the fastest pace in seven months as sales soared 12.3 percent to an annual rate of 5.28 million units according to the National Association of Realtors. That far surpassed forecasts for a rise to 4.85 million.
According to the Labor Department the number of Americans filing for first-time unemployment benefits dropped sharply to 404,000 from a downwardly revised reading of 441,000 the prior week.
Despite what those numbers show there is further evidence that the economy is picking up a bit of momentum after one of its longest stretches of stagnation since the Great Depression. One piece of evidence is that future economic activity rose in December which suggests that the U.S. economy will strengthen over the next few months.
However, despite the higher sales at the end of 2010, the housing market remains under heavy pressure. Home prices have been pushed down by a record number of foreclosures and high unemployment. Also, fearful that prices have yet to bottom out many potential buyers held off on purchases last year.