WASHINGTON, May 27: Sales of new homes across the United States rose an unexpected 3.3 per cent in April from the prior month, to a seasonally adjusted annual pace of 526,000 homes, a government report showed on Tuesday.

The spike in sales confounded most economists forecasts of a sales decline last month. New home sales in March, however, were revised lower to 509,000 properties compared with an initial tally of 526,000, according to the Commerce Department survey.

Although activity rose over the month, sales of new homes in the 12 months to April have dived a hefty 42 per cent in the midst of a persistent housing market slump.

Turnover of new homes has fallen steadily in the past two years, excepting some month-on-month gains, amid one of the worst US housing market downturns in decades.

The housing meltdown has been exacerbated in the past nine months by a broad credit crunch which has swept through the banking sector, making it harder for Americans to obtain mortgages and credit.

A report on Friday showed that sales of existing homes, which represent a much larger wedge of the overall housing market than newly-built properties, fell one per cent during April from March.—AFP