US housing starts rise more than expected in March
US housing starts rose more than expected in March, according to data released by the Commerce Department on Tuesday.
Housing starts were up 1.9% to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 1.319m units, versus expectations for a rise to 1.262m. The February figure, meanwhile, was revised to 1.295m from 1.236m.
Single-family housing starts in March fell 3.7% to 867,000 from February's revised 900,000 and permits for new construction were 2.5% higher to 1.354m last month, which was above consensus expectations of 1.321m.
Pantheon Macroeconomics economist Ian Shepherdson said: "The headlines look great, but all the increase in both starts and permits is in the volatile multi-family sector; single-family starts fell 3.7%, with permits down 5.5%, following recent weakness in new home sales.
"Single-family accounts for more than two thirds of housing construction so short-term swings in the multi-family numbers can't overwhelm the trend. Construction activity tracks sales, so a sustained rise in housing starts in the near-term is unlikely."