WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - New residential construction in the U.S. soared by more than expected in the month of November, according to a report released by the Commerce Department on Tuesday.
The report said housing starts surged up by 3.2 percent to an annual rate of 1.365 million in November from a revised October estimate of 1.323 million.
Economists had expected housing starts to jump by 2.4 percent to a rate of 1.345 million from the 1.314 million originally reported for the previous month.
Building permits, an indicator of future housing demand, also climbed by 1.4 percent to an annual rate of 1.482 million in November from a rate of 1.461 million in October.
The continued increase came as a surprise to economists, who had expected building permits to slump by 3.5 percent to a rate of 1.410 million.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX
© 2019 AFX News
