DJIA down 1.22 points (Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) - New York, 16 Aug - US shares were trading flat to lower at midday as better than expected consumer confidence data offset some of the disappointment after downbeat housing data raised concern about economic growth.

Wall Street posted one of its best days of the year yesterday after strong retail sales confounded expectations and pointed to a US economy that remains resilient.

According to the University of Michigan, consumer sentiment rose to 67.8 in August from 66.4 the previous month, topping expectations for a reading of 66.7.

But data on housing starts and permits today came in below expectations, casting a shadow over the state of the real economy as high interest rates take their toll.

Yesterday's stronger-than-expected retail sales print followed inflation data earlier in the week that helped boost hopes that a soft landing for the economy is on the cards as pricing pressure slowly falls towards the Federal Reserve's target growth rate of 2%.

The CME Group's FedWatch Tool is currently pricing in a 100% chance of a Fed rate cut at the next policy meeting in September with the chance of more to come later in the year.

At 1515 GMT, the Dow Jones was losing 1.22 points, or 0.00%, at 40,561.84 points.

The S&P 500 was 5.12 points, or 0.09%, lower at 5,538.10 points.

The Nasdaq was down 25.79 points, or 0.14%, at 17,570.42 points.

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(RADIOCOR) 16-08-24 17:26:39 (0346) 5 NNNN