Steel Markets
April 16, 2020
Housing Construction Slowed by Coronavirus
Written by Sandy Williams
Housing starts plummeted 22.3 percent in March to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,216,000, according to new data from the U.S. Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development. Single-family starts declined 17.5 percent and multifamily starts of five units or more plunged 32 percent.
“Single-family starts began an expected, virus-related decline in March,” said National Association of Home Builders Chief Economist Robert Dietz. “Construction activity is expected to fall as virus mitigation efforts result in increased unemployment, economic uncertainty and lost business activity.”
