By Fergal Smith
TORONTO, Aug 6 (Reuters) - Greater Toronto Area home sales rose in July for a fifth straight month and prices increased, supported by recent signs of improvement in the domestic economy, Toronto Regional Real Estate Board data showed on Thursday.
• Seasonally adjusted sales increased 3.2% last month from June to 5,582 units, marking the highest level of sales since September last year.
• The board's home price index was up 0.3% month-over-month, after seasonal adjustment, to C$933,800
($665,811.05), marking the second straight month of higher prices.
• The Greater Toronto Area includes Canada's most populous city and four surrounding regional municipalities.
• "While uncertainty about the economy and borrowing costs persists, recent news has been more positive than expected," the board's chief information officer, Jason Mercer, said in a statement.
• "This could help bolster consumer confidence and prompt an uptick in home purchases in the months ahead," Mercer said.
• Recent preliminary data has pointed to Canada's economy growing by 3.4% in the second quarter, which would be its best quarterly performance for more than three years.
• On a year-over-year basis, home sales fell 0.9%, while new listings declined 17.8% and the price index was down 4.6%.
($1 = 1.4025 Canadian dollars)
(Reporting by Fergal Smith; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)
