WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - A report released by the Commerce Department on Thursday showed new residential construction in the U.S. unexpectedly increased in the month of November.
The Commerce Department said housing starts jumped by 1.2 percent to an annual rate of 1.547 million in November from a revised October rate of 1.528 million.
Economists had expected housing starts to come in unchanged compared to the 1.530 million originally reported for the previous month.
The report also said building permits spiked by 6.2 percent to an annual rate of 1.639 million in November from 1.544 million in October.
Building permits, an indicator of future housing demand, had been expected to rise by 0.4 percent to a rate of 1.550 million.
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