- Building Permits for September rose to 2189K versus estimates of 2189K and 2075K in August.
- The EIA just reported crude oil inventories rose 5.55M barrels versus estimates of a 2.3M barrel rise. Gasoline supplies rose 2.91M barrels versus estimates of a decline of 1.5M barrels. Distillate inventories fell 1.92M barrels versus estimates of a 2.3M barrel fall.
BOTTOM LINE: US housing starts unexpectedly increased last month, suggesting demand is holding up even as borrowing costs rise, Bloomberg said. The rise in building permits was the greatest since February 1973. Applications for home purchases rose 7.3% last week, the Mortgage Bankers Association said. Construction that was authorized but not yet begun rose .8% to 235,300 units, the best since 1979. Starts rose 6.9% in the South and 1.9% in the Midwest. Starts were unchanged in the West and Northeast. Concerns over a nationwide plunge in housing are vastly overstated at this point. I continue to believe housing will slow modestly to more healthy sustainable rates, not plunge.
The EIA energy inventory data were very bearish for crude oil considering how much capacity is still shut-in.
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