Looking at today's economic updates, we have a pair of reports where US activity fell short of expectations. High mortgage rates continue to dampen buyer demand, leading to a decline in July new home sales. This specific housing challenge is currently drawing a great deal of political and economic attention. On a separate note, the Conference Board Consumer Confidence metric did not meet consensus estimates, dipping to 89.2. This downward shift places even higher stakes on what the upcoming UMich survey will reveal.

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