WORLD> America
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WORLD> America
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US home construction falls sharply in September
(Agencies)
Updated: 2008-10-17 21:57 WASHINGTON – Construction of new homes plunged by a bigger-than-expected amount in September as builders slashed production to the slowest pace since early 1991, when the country was in a deep recession.
A barometer of future building also dropped to the weakest level in more than 25 years. The building industry is on pace to construct the fewest new homes and apartments this year since the end of World War II. The Commerce Department reported Friday that construction of new homes and apartments dropped by 6.3 percent last month, a much bigger decline than the 1.6 percent decrease that had been expected. It pushed total production to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 817,000 units. That's the slowest pace since January 1991, when the US was in a recession and going through a similar painful housing correction. The declines last month reflected weakness in many parts of the country. It was led by a 20.9 percent drop in the Northeast, where construction of single-family units fell to the lowest level on record. Construction slipped by 16.8 percent in the West with single-family building hitting a record low there, too. The Midwest saw a gain of 5.6 percent, although that reflected strength in apartment construction as single-family building also hit a record low in that region. Construction activity in the South was up a slight 0.5 percent. Applications for building permits, considered a good sign for future activity, also fell sharply in September, dropping by 8.3 percent to an annual rate of 786,000 units, the weakest level since November 1981. |
