New figures show that US housing starts unexpectedly rebounded in February, surging 22.2% from January. The Commerce Department numbers provided a rare dose of good news for the recession-hit economy and the battered US housing market.
Housing starts - privately-owned new homes on which construction has started - jumped to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 583,000 units. This was the biggest percentage rise since January 1990.
It was also the first increase since April last year, when starts rose by 1.6%. Most analysts had expected another fall in February. Despite the monthly rise, however, the February figure was still 47% down on the same month last year.
Permits to build new homes, an indicator of future activity in the housing sector, rose 3% from January, the department said.
Separate figures from the Labor Department showed that US producer prices rose by less than expected in February as the pace of energy price increases slowed.
The seasonally adjusted producer price index - which measures the prices of goods before they reach the consumer - increased by 0.1% last month, compared with a 0.8% gain in January.
