US homebuilding fell by 5.1 percent in August, snapping growth evident since May as the six month-long novel coronavirus crisis continued to hurt the world's largest economy, the Census Bureau said on Thursday
WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 17th September, 2020) US homebuilding fell by 5.1 percent in August, snapping growth evident since May as the six month-long novel coronavirus crisis continued to hurt the world's largest economy, the Census Bureau said on Thursday.
"Privately-owned housing starts in August were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,416,000. This is 5.1 percent below the revised July estimate of 1,492,000," the Census Bureau, a component of the Commerce Department, said.
The Census Bureau noted that coronavirus-specific information related to the housing data might be issued after further scrutiny.
The housing market is the cornerstone of the US economy and accounts for nearly 15 percent of the country's Gross Domestic Product.
US housing had grown steadily in the previous three months, expanding 4.3 percent in May, and 17.3 percent in June and 22.6 percent in July.
