In America, Australia and parts of Europe, property markets have shrugged off higher interest ratesPhotograph: Getty Images Jun 16th 2024|San FranciscoIs a fresh housing boom under way? In April a house-price index for the world, excluding China, rose by more than 3% year on year (see chart 1). American house prices are 6.5% higher than a year ago, Australian ones are up by 5% and Portuguese ones are soaring. In other countries, the market looks surprisingly strong given years of high interest r...