The US NAHB housing market index rose slightly in June, while the consensus was looking for a marginal decline. The NAHB housing market index rose from a downwardly revised 28 to 29, while an outcome of 28 was forecast. The breakdown shows an improvement in sentiment regarding the present situation (32 from 30), while the future index stabilized at 34. The index is now at its highest level in five years time, suggesting that the worst is over for the US housing market. Nevertheless, as economic data in the US are worsening again, it will be interesting to see how the housing market weathers a new slowdown in activity.