New home sales reached a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 684,000 units, comfortably outpacing the consensus estimate of 620,000. July’s figures also saw an upward revision to 643,000, signaling a more resilient housing sector than previously anticipated. Despite this monthly momentum, sales remain down 2.0% compared to August 2025.

Market participants are monitoring these figures closely as the housing sector attempts to recover from the impact of aggressive Federal Reserve interest rate hikes. The median price for a new home settled at $393,700, with an inventory of 483,000 houses currently available, representing an 8.5-month supply. Following the release, spot gold dipped 0.45% to trade at $4,268.28 per ounce, after touching a session low of $4,244.27.