Housing

• A Round Trip in Single Family Housing. Single family housing returns to expansionary territory for the first time since 2005. Valeo Financial Advisors
• The Federal Housing Finance Agency plans to decrease the maximum amount of mortgages backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in January 2014 MarketWatch

U.S. Economy

• Consumer credit failed to meet estimates, rising only to $10.4 billion in July as credit-card use fell for second month Bloomberg
• Jobless claims declined to 292,000, lower than estimates and reaching the lowest level since April 2006 according to the Labor Department The Wall Street Journal
• Retail sales rose 0.2 % in August, meeting estimates but suggest Americans have remained cautious with summer spending  Yahoo! Finance 
• U.S. producer prices rise by 0.3%, which beat estimates. While inflation is expected to gradually rise and increase prices, the Fed’s announcement next Tuesday will hopefully define the future for the bond buying program. Reuters

World Economy

• Saudi Arabia and Iraq raised oil production recently as the concerns of an immediate Syria strike diminished The Wall Street Journal
• TSB bank in Britain aims at breaking up the British banking oligopoly as the European Commission forced market breakup The Economist

Education

• Almost 5 years since the day Lehman Brothers went bust, check out the balance sheets of the world’s largest banks to see who is now on top The Economist