Hong Kong Bubble?: Hong Kong Residential Property Prices May 2011

Today, the University of Hong Kong released their Hong Kong Residential Real Estate Series (HKU-REIS) indicating that, in May, the price of residential properties increased 2.01% since April climbing 26.52% above the level seen in May 2010.

The “Hong Kong Island” index, “Kowloon” and “New Territories” sub-components also showed notable monthly and annual increases with the "Hong Kong Island" series indicated that prices have now far outpaced the prior 1997 peak.

The HKU-REIS is a set of property price indices constructed monthly using a “modified” repeat-sale methodology similar to that of the S&P/Case-Shiller indices yet suited to the Hong Kong property market.

Massive Unemployment: Mass Layoffs June 2011

The latest release of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Mass Layoff Report indicated a decline in large-scale layoffs with 1532 mass layoff events for June resulting in 143,444 initial unemployment claimants on a seasonally adjusted basis.

The BLS considers a mass layoff event to be a condition where there are at least fifty initial claims for unemployment insurance originating from a single employer over a period of five consecutive weeks.

FHFA Monthly Home Prices: May 2011

Today, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) released the latest results of their monthly house price index (HPI) showing that, nationally, home prices increased 0.38% since April but declined 6.45% below the level seen in May 2010.

The FHFA monthly HPI are formulated from home purchase information collected from mortgages that have been sold to or guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.