US building permits hit four-year low, housing starts post biggest increase in five months

US building permits fell by 2.8% to a seasonally adjusted annualised rate of 1.35m in July, according to the Census Bureau, the lowest reading since June 2020 and below market expectations of 1.39m.

Source: Sharecast

Permits for buildings with five or more units dropped by 9.9% to an annualised rate of 430,000, while single-family permits increased by 0.5% to 870,000.

Housing starts, on the other hand, rose by 5.2% month-on-month to a seasonally adjusted annualised rate of 1.42m in July, the biggest increase in five months and in contrast with market expectations of a drop to 1.29m, extending the upwardly revised 5.9% jump from June.

Starts were carried by housing with five or more units for a second month, up 11.6% to 470,000, faster than one-unit starts, up 2.8% to 939,000.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com

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