Starts Drop in August
- Housing starts came in much weaker than expected, posting the sharpest monthly drop since April 2013. Although singlefamily and multifamily starts fell in August, the weakness was largely due to the volatile multifamily component. August’s drop follows an upwardly revised 22.9 percent increase in July.
- Overall, starts fell in every region, but single-family starts rose in the Northeast and South during the month.
Permits Weak, but Overall Momentum Unchanged
- Permits fell 5.6 percent in August, also with broad-based weakness. Despite the decline, the level of multifamily permits are running ahead of starts, which suggests we could see improvement in this component in the coming months. However, the recent moderation in apartment demand suggests we could be reaching a peak. Year-to-date single-family permits in August are still about the same level as last year.
Recommended Content
Editors’ Picks
AUD/USD tumbles toward 0.6350 as Middle East war fears mount
AUD/USD has come under intense selling pressure and slides toward 0.6350, as risk-aversion intensifies following the news that Israel retaliated with missile strikes on a site in Iran. Fears of the Israel-Iran strife translating into a wider regional conflict are weighing on the higher-yielding Aussie Dollar.
USD/JPY breaches 154.00 as sell-off intensifies on Israel-Iran escalation
USD/JPY is trading below 154.00 after falling hard on confirmation of reports of an Israeli missile strike on Iran, implying that an open conflict is underway and could only spread into a wider Middle East war. Safe-haven Japanese Yen jumped, helped by BoJ Governor Ueda's comments.
Gold price jumps above $2,400 as MidEast escalation sparks flight to safety
Gold price has caught a fresh bid wave, jumping beyond $2,400 after Israel's retaliatory strikes on Iran sparked a global flight to safety mode and rushed flows into the ultimate safe-haven Gold. Risk assets are taking a big hit, as risk-aversion creeps into Asian trading on Friday.
WTI surges to $85.00 amid Israel-Iran tensions
Western Texas Intermediate, the US crude oil benchmark, is trading around $85.00 on Friday. The black gold gains traction on the day amid the escalating tension between Israel and Iran after a US official confirmed that Israeli missiles had hit a site in Iran.
Dogwifhat price pumps 5% ahead of possible Coinbase effect
Dogwifhat price recorded an uptick on Thursday, going as far as to outperform its peers in the meme coins space. Second only to Bonk Inu, WIF token’s show of strength was not just influenced by Bitcoin price reclaiming above $63,000.