Housing starts south of the border tumbled to a year-and-a-half-year low in September amid a steep decline in the construction of multi-family homes, although a surge in the construction of single-family units pointed to sustained strength in the housing market.
Figures released Wednesday by the U.S. Commerce Department showed groundbreaking dropped 9% to a seasonally adjusted annual pace of 1.05 million units, the lowest level since March 2015. August's starts were revised up to a 1.15 million-unit pace from the previously reported 1.14 million-unit rate.
The department also revealed that single-family home building, which accounts for the largest share of the residential housing market, jumped 8.1 percent to a 783,000-unit pace in September, the highest level since February.
Economists had forecast housing starts rising to a 1.18-million-unit pace in September. Last month's drop left the overall housing starts in the third quarter well below their average for the second quarter.
That suggests residential construction continued to pull down gross domestic product in the third quarter after subtracting from output in the April-June period.
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