New home construction in US declines in January
February 16, 2007
According to a new report from the US Commerce Department, the number of new homes built in the United States dropped much more than had been expected in January, with 14.3 percent fewer houses built. New home starts were at 1.4 million units on an annualized basis. The new data comes on the heels of a report showing that the number of new applications for new homes dropped 2.8 percent to an annual rate of 1.56 million in the month. In addition, the National Association of Realtors has said that sales of existing homes was down in 40 of the 50 US states in the last quarter of 2006.
The new data, which indicates collectively that the slowdown in the US housing market is likely to continue for awhile longer rather than stabilizing, worries analysts. The new housing numbers received more attention than Labor Department figures showing that wholesale inflation was 0.6 percent lower in January. The numbers show, analysts said, that the slowdown in the housing sector will likely affect the gross domestic product for a longer period of time than had originally been expected.