Spot gold back at $4,400/oz as U.S. pending home sales surprise with 2.3% drop in July

(Kitco News) - Hopes for a stabilizing U.S. housing market were weakened after the number of potential home buyers came in well below expectations last month, according to the latest data from the National Association of Realtors (NAR).The U.S. pending home sales index fell 2.3% in July, the NAR announced on Tuesday. The data was worse than forecasts, as economists expected a 0.3% rise. June’s print was revised to -4.8% from -5.4%.