Canadian home sales rise at slower pace

TORONTO, July 14 (Reuters): Canadian home sales rose in June as more homes became available for sale, but the pace of sales growth cooled compared to recent months as the Bank of Canada restarted its interest rate hiking campaign.
Home sales rose 1.5 per cent in June from May, a smaller increase than was posted in April and May, data from the Canadian Real Estate Association showed on Friday.
Sales were up 4.7 per cent on an annual basis.
"Housing markets appear to be stabilising heading into the summer following some big ups and downs over the last year," Larry Cerqua, CREA chair, said in a statement.
"Most importantly, the recovery in new listings over the last few months will give buyers more choice and should help to slow price growth over the second half of the year."
The number of newly listed homes was up 5.9 per cent in June from May, extending the recovery from a 20-year low in March and moving closer to more normal levels.
CREA's Home Price Index climbed 2.0 per cent on the month but was down 4.7 per cent annually, while the national average selling price was up 6.7 per cent on the year.
The Bank of Canada raised interest rates in June for the first time since January. On Wednesday, it tightened further, lifting its benchmark rate to a 22-year high of 5.0%.