New residential housing construction was surprisingly weak in December, presenting more evidence for assuming that the US economic growth will continue to slow. Housing permits perked up, providing a degree of optimism for expecting that building activity will rebound in the months ahead. But reviewing both indicators on a rolling one-year basis suggests that the housing trend has weakened - a trend that will create headwinds for the US economy in the months ahead.
Housing starts fell 10.9% in December vs. the year-earlier level - the biggest annual decline since September 2016. The annual change