U.S. housing market stuck in soft patch; confidence rises

WASHINGTON - U.S. homebuilding tumbled to a more than two-year low in December as construction of both single and multi-family housing declined, the latest indication that the economy had lost momentum in the fourth quarter.

“Regardless, the economy is moderating ... which means the Fed should be able to maintain its cautious approach to monetary policy,” said Joel Naroff, chief economist at Naroff Economic Advisors in Holland, Pennsylvania. The release of the December housing starts and building permits report was delayed by a 35-day partial shutdown of the federal government that ended on Jan. 25. No date has been set for the release of January’s report.

A second report from the Conference Board on Tuesday showed its consumer confidence index increased 9.7 points to a reading of 131.4 in February after being held back by financial market volatility and the government shutdown. Slowing house price inflation was also corroborated by a fourth report from the Federal Housing Finance Agency showing house prices rose 0.3 percent on a monthly basis in December after advancing 0.4 percent in November.

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