Market Update: U.S. Commercial Real Estate Market Losing Steam

The National Association of Realtors’(NAR) Commercial Leading Indicator for brokerage activity recently reported that activity, which was 119.1 in the first quarter of 2008, was down 0.9 percent to 117.9 in the second quarter. NAR says that economic instability and job loss are leading contributors to the decline of the U.S. commercial real estate market.

The Commercial Leading Indicator is comprised of several variables that commercial real estate analysts feel reflect future commercial real estate activity. The list includes:

• Retail sales and durable goods shipment
• Temporary help jobs
• Initial claims for unemployment
• Industrial output

Source: ActionForex.com