US housing starts fall sharply as wintery conditions bite

(Sharecast News) - Construction starts on privately owned housing in the United States sank sharply in January, according to figures out on Wednesday from the Census Bureau. Housing starts came in at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.37m, down 9.8% from the 10-month high of 1.52m registered in December after a 16% surge that month.

This was below the 1.40m expected by analysts, and just under the 1.38m level seen in January 2024, as severe wintery weather and snowstorms curtailed construction activity.

Housing starts for single-family homes fell 8.4% to 993,000 while starts on multi-unit buildings (five or more units) dropped 11% to 355,000.

Nevertheless, building permits, which help economists predict what housing conditions may be like in the coming months, rose 0.1% over the month to 1.48m, ahead of the 1.46m consensus forecast.

Housing completions in January totalled 1.65m, 7.6% up on December's level.