New home sales fell more than expected after spike in mortgage rates

Sales of new U.S. homes fell more than expected in October as a spike in mortgage rates weighed heavily on consumer demand. 

New single-family home purchases plummeted 5.6% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 679,000 units, the Commerce Department reported Monday. Economists surveyed by Refinitiv expected new home sales — which account for a small percentage of total sales — to come in at a rate of 723,000 units.

Sales remain up about 17.7% from the same time one year ago.

"Despite the month-over-month decline in sales, the pace...