US housing starts up

Data published by the US Census Bureau has indicated that the number of housing starts in the nation rose by 9.4 per cent during June, compared to May.

In a poll of economists carried out by Bloomberg ahead of the survey's release, those questioned predicted that the rate of new residential construction would rise by 2.7 per cent over the previous month.

The results also showed that applications for building permits - which can offer an insight into the potential number of future housing developments - increased by 2.5 per cent over the same period.

Senior economist at BMO Capital Markets in Toronto Jennifer Lee told the international news resource that the US real estate sector is "one of the weaker links in the economy".

Ms Lee also pointed out that the current climate is difficult for construction firms, that are competing to sell new properties against the cheaper, foreclosed dwellings on the market.

Earlier this month, a Jones Lang LaSalle report revealed that the second quarter of 2011 saw investment in US real estate increase, compared to both the previous three months and the same period in 2010.
 

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