Housing Starts Hit 18-Month High

Housing starts rose in April to the highest level in a year and a half, the Commerce Department said Tuesday.

Starts rose 5.8% to an annual rate of 672,000 units from March, the highest level since October 2008.

The level exceeded economists’ forecasts of a 650,000 rate, Bloomberg reported. March’s starts were revised up to 635,000, from 626,000.

Building permits, an indicator of future construction, fell 12% to an annual rate of 606,000. Economists had forecast them to hold at 680,000, matching March’s 18-month high, Bloomberg reported.