US housing starts unexpectedly drop in December

US housing starts fell in December, missing economists’ expectations, according to data released by the Commerce Department.

Housing starts were down 2.5% from the previous month to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 1.15m, undershooting expectations for a rise to 1.2m. They were up 6.4% compared with the same month in 2014.

Meanwhile, starts for single-family homes fell 3.3% from the revised November figure of 794,000 to an annual rate of 768,000.

Permits for new construction, which are a closely-followed gauge of future demand, fell 3.9% from the revised November rate of 1.28m to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 1.23m. Still, the drop was less steep than expected, as economists had pencilled in a reading of 1.2m.

Permits for single-family homes, which account for approximately 75% of the housing market, rose 1.8% from the November figure to 740,000.