New Reports Show Economic Rebound

Fresh reports show the economy growing moderately without stirring inflation: Existing-home sales rose in June for a second straight month and employment costs increased at the slowest pace on record.

In June, sales of previously owned homes jumped 6.5 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.78 million, highest since a 3.82 million rate last October, the National Association of Realtors reported Tuesday.

At the same time, the Labor Department said its Employment Cost Index advanced just 2.9 percent in the year ended in June, matching the smallest gain since the series began in 1981.

“The performance of the ECI points to something different about this (business) cycle,” said economist Bruce Steinberg of Merrill Lynch & Co.

“Inflation remains dormant in the fifth year of an expansion,” he added.