US housing starts rise 1.9% in October, beating estimates

By Ovunc Kutlu

ISTANBUL (AA) - US housing starts rose 1.9% in October from the previous month, coming in above market expectations, according to data released Friday.

Housing starts, which measure the change in the number of new residential buildings beginning construction, stood at 1.372 million, according to the Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Market estimates for the figure were at 1.345 million, while the September figure was revised downward from 1.358 million to 1.346 million.

Housing starts showed a massive decline of 12.5% in August, when they stood at 1.269 million.

Annually, however, housing starts were down 4.2% in October, compared to the same month of last year when they stood at 1.432 million.

Building permits, a key indicator of market demand, rose 1.1% to 1.487 million in October.

Market expectations for the figure were for 1.450 million, while the September figure was slightly revised downward from 1.473 million to 1.471 million.

In August, building permits rose 6.8% to 1.541 million.

On an annual basis, building permits were down 4.4% from the same month in 2022 when they stood at 1.555 million.