US New Home Sales Fell in March

 　　Sales of new homes in the U.S. fell last month, but still are edging higher than in the last months of 2011.

　　The government's Commerce Department said Tuesday that buyers in March bought new houses at an annual pace of 328,000, off more than 7 percent from a spurt¹ in sales in February. The sales pace is slightly higher than in the last quarter of last year, but less than half the 700,000 figure that analysts² consider the sign of a healthy market.

　　The U.S. housing market is perhaps the weakest part of the American economy, the world's largest. Millions of homeowners, many of them laid off from jobs in the recession, lost their houses to bank foreclosures when they were unable to make loan payments. As a result, there is a glut³ of homes for sale in the country and even record-low interest rates on loans have not boosted sales much.

　　A separate survey showed home prices in 20 U.S. cities in February (the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller index) dropped at a slower pace than in recent months. But the index indicated property values still declined 3.5 percent from a year earlier.

1 spurt   

v.喷出；突然进发；突然兴隆

参考例句：

• He put in a spurt at the beginning of the eighth lap.他进入第八圈时便开始冲刺。
• After a silence, Molly let her anger spurt out.沉默了一会儿，莫莉的怒气便迸发了出来。

2 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

3 glut   

n.存货过多，供过于求；v.狼吞虎咽

参考例句：

• The glut of coffee led to a sharp drop in prices.咖啡供过于求道致价格急剧下跌。
• There's a glut of agricultural products in Western Europe.西欧的农产品供过于求。