New Housing Starts Fall 7.4% in April

.S. new housing starts fell 7.4% in April, declining for the third straight month, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday.

Housing starts dropped to a 1.849 million unit annual rate, from March’s 1.996 million.

The level was below economists’ forecast of a 2.04 million pace, Bloomberg reported.

ncreased construction can mean more business for flatbed trucking companies that haul building materials. In home construction, dry van freight can see demand increases in for delivery of household appliances and furniture.

Housing starts fell in two of four national regions, Commerce said, dropping in the West and South, and rising in the East and Midwest.