WASHINGTON: New US home construction surged in July to an eight-month high, rebounding after a two-month slump, a positive sign of growth in the housing market, official data showed Tuesday.
Housing starts leaped 15.7 percent last month from June to an annual rate of 1.093 million, the strongest pace since last November, the Commerce Department said.
Building permits, indicating potential construction growth, rose 8.1 percent to a rate of 1.052 million.
The data came in significantly stronger than expected. Analysts' consensus estimates were for 964,000 starts and 1.001 million permits.
New construction of single-family homes, which make up the bulk of the US housing market, rose 8.3 percent. Starts on multi-family units jumped 33.0 percent.
Year-over-year, the rebound in the construction sector pushed housing starts up 21.7 percent and building permits up 7.7 percent.
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