US housing starts declined in October at their fastest pace in 18 years, the Commerce Department said today Starts fell 11.4pc in October from September, which meant the number of homes on which builders broke ground slipped to an annual rate of 1.603 million units, a six-month low. Although the decline was far larger than the 5.7pc drop that had been expected, home construction at the US remains close to historically high levels. Housing construction jumped by 11pc in September to a rate of 1.81 million units, the highest level in since December 1986. Economists had warned that the September surge would not be repeated
Economists expect housing to remain robust over the coming months, despite the sluggish activity in other sectors of the economy, as consumers continue to take advantage of low mortgage rates. The Federal Reserve slash half a percentage point from its federal funds rate this month, lowering it to 1.25pc //www.fxcentre.com