Business news for Mon, 31 Dec 2007 & with words market+sales. 16 news.

Sales of previously owned homes nudged up in November, but that didn’t improve the broader picture of a feeble housing market.

Reuters - The pace of existing U.S. home sales edged up in November from a record low, according to a report on Monday that offered some tentative signs of stabilization in the still-ailing housing market.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The pace of existing U.S. home sales edged up in November from a record low, according to a report on Monday that offered some tentative signs of stabilization in the still-ailing housing market.

Even with the last-day retreat, major indexes posted gains for the year. Data on existing home sales provided rare good news for the housing market

Monthly resales of homes in the United States inched up in November, a bright spot in a market where sales were still off 20 per cent from year ago.

Stocks floundered Monday morning, on the last trading day of the year, after a report on sales of existing homes showed little improvement in the beleaguered housing market.

Sales of previously owned homes nudged up in November, but that didn't improve the broader picture of a feeble housing market racked by record-high foreclosures and harder-to-get credit.

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - In a hint of stability, sales of existing homes rose 0.4% in November to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 5.00 million, the National Association of Realtors reported Monday. Sales of existing homes are down 20% in the past year and are down 31% from the peak of 7.21 million two years ago. Inventories of unsold homes on the market declined by 3.6%, representing a 10.3-month supply at the current sales pace. The median sales price fell 3.3% compared with a year ago to $210,200. November sales were in line with the 4.99 million annual pace expected by economists surveyed by MarketWatch.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks were set to push a little higher on the last trading day of the year on Monday, but data on existing home sales could limit any advance.

Reuters - Stocks were set to push a little higher on the last trading day of the year on Monday, but data on existing home sales could limit any advance.

BOSTON (MarketWatch) -- M/I Homes Inc. Monday said it has sold land located primarily in Florida to various buyers for $82 million and that it is exiting the West Palm Beach housing market. The home builder said as a result of the lot sales, it will book pretax land impairment charges of about $80 million in the fourth quarter, and expects to see a $50 million cash tax refund in the second quarter of 2008. M/I Homes said it is "likely" that further impairment charges will be recorded in the fourth quarter. The company said the land sold represented 3,700 lots; at the end of the third quarter, it owned 16,767 lots. "Today's announcement supports and advances our strategic objectives of strengthening our balance sheet, reducing our debt, reducing operating costs, and focusing on markets where we believe we have the best opportunity for acceptable and consistent returns," said Chief Executive Robert Schottenstein in a statement.

Shares in Game Group hit an all-time high Monday after the computer and video game retailer said it expects to beat market expectations following strong sales over the Christmas period. More broadly, the FTSE 100 index ended lower in shortened trading.

The housing market plunged deeper into despair last month, with sales of new homes plummeting to their lowest level in more than 12 years. The slump worsened even more than most analysts expected, heightening fears that the country might be thrust into...

AP - The housing market plunged deeper into despair last month, with sales of new homes plummeting to their lowest level in more than 12 years.

Reuters - British computer and video games retailer Game Group Plc said it expected its full-year profit to be ahead of an average market forecast after continued strong sales in the run-up to Christmas, boosting its shares.

LONDON (MarketWatch) -- U.K. computer and video game retailer Game Group said Monday that, following strong sales in the last few weeks, it now expects pretax profit excluding one-off items for the year ended Jan. 31 to be ahead of market expectations. The group said pretax profit should be at least 70 million pounds ($139.7 million), compared to 29.5 million pounds a year ago. As previously announced it expects non-recurring costs to be around 8 million pounds.