Pending home sales took an unexpected dip in February, slipping 0.5% to 96.5 on the National Association of Realtors Pending Home Sales Index. This drop shows a poor start for home selling heading into spring. Economists were expecting a 1% jump after a 2% jump in January.

The warm winter could also be skewing housing numbers as home sales saw unexpected jumps earlier in the year. Analysts are still waiting to see the housing industry recover as it was one of the worst hit from the 2008 economic crisis. Improvements in the jobs market and lower home sales should lead to some noticeable improvements later this year, hopefully.

Stocks are holding up after this poor news from the housing sector thanks to remarks from Ben Bernanke.

In late morning trading, the major stock indices are up 1% or more. [Read more...]