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Housing Starts and Permits  
Released On 12/18/2018 8:30:00 AM For Nov, 2018
 PriorPrior RevisedConsensusConsensus RangeActual
Starts - Annual Rate1.228 M1.217 M1.221 M1.200 M to 1.250 M1.256 M
Permits - Annual Rate1.263 M1.265 M1.255 M1.250 M to 1.275 M1.328 M
US 6-Mo ChartGlobal Current
performance relative to consensus

Consensus Outlook
Housing starts and permits have been struggling this year with no improvement the expectation for November. Forecasters see November starts coming in at a 1.221 million annualized rate vs 1.228 million in October with permits seen at a 1.255 million rate vs 1.265 million (1.263 million initially reported and since revised).

Relative Performance Index

Econoday's RPI provides a handy summary measure of how an economy has recently been evolving relative to market expectations.
A reading above zero means that the economy in general has been performing more strongly than expected and vice versa for a reading below zero. The closer is the value to the maximum (+100) or minimum (-100) levels, the greater is the degree to which markets have been under- or over-estimating economic activity. A zero outturn would imply that, on average, the market consensus has been correct. Note too that the index is sensitized to place extra weight upon those indicators that investors consider to be the most important.

 

Definition
Housing starts measure the initial construction of single-family and multi-family units on a monthly basis. Data on permits provide indications of future construction. A housing start is registered at the start of construction of a new building intended primarily as a residential building. The start of construction is defined as the beginning of excavation of the foundation for the building. Why Investors Care

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