Home Construction Hits 17-Year Low
U.S. Economy: Home Construction Hits 17-Year Low (Update2)
By Timothy R. Homan and Courtney Schlisserman
July 17 (Bloomberg) -- Builders started work in June on the fewest single-family U.S. homes since 1991 and manufacturing in the Philadelphia region contracted for an eighth straight month, signaling the economic slowdown is worsening.
Construction starts fell to an annual pace of 647,000, the Commerce Department said today in Washington. A change in New York City building codes spurred total starts, which include condominiums and apartment buildings, to a four-month high.
The figures underscore the housing recession was already deepening before the financial turmoil this month at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac threatened to further curb mortgage financing. Today's drop in the Philadelphia Federal Reserve's factory gauge showed manufacturers cut orders and employment in July as confidence in the economic outlook deteriorated.
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By Timothy R. Homan and Courtney Schlisserman
July 17 (Bloomberg) -- Builders started work in June on the fewest single-family U.S. homes since 1991 and manufacturing in the Philadelphia region contracted for an eighth straight month, signaling the economic slowdown is worsening.
Construction starts fell to an annual pace of 647,000, the Commerce Department said today in Washington. A change in New York City building codes spurred total starts, which include condominiums and apartment buildings, to a four-month high.
The figures underscore the housing recession was already deepening before the financial turmoil this month at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac threatened to further curb mortgage financing. Today's drop in the Philadelphia Federal Reserve's factory gauge showed manufacturers cut orders and employment in July as confidence in the economic outlook deteriorated.
--MORE--