Economic Buzz: US new housing starts drop steeply in October

New residential construction in the U.S. saw a steep drop in the month of October, according to a report released by the Commerce Department on Friday.

The report said housing starts plunged by 4.6 percent to an annual rate of 1.246 million in October after jumping by 1.2 percent to an annual rate of 1.306 million in September.

The steep drop by housing starts was concentrated in multi-family starts, which plummeted by 22.0 percent to an annual rate of 372,000 in October after spiking by 13.0 percent to an annual rate of 477,000 in September.

On the other hand, the Commerce Department said single-family starts surged by 5.4 percent to an annual rate of 874,000 in October after tumbling by 4.6 percent to an annual rate of 829,000 in September.

The report also said building permits dipped by 0.2 percent to an annual rate of 1.412 million in October after surging by 6.4 percent to an annual rate of 1.415 million in September.

Building permits, an indicator of future housing demand, were expected to come in at an annual rate of 1.350 million.

Single-family permits fell by 0.5 percent to an annual rate of 876,000, while multi-family starts crept up by 0.2 percent to an annual rate of 536,000.

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