Homebuilding activity in the US has started to gain traction after most of it was severely impacted during COVID-19 related shutdowns, which could help increase the demand for metals used in construction.
Preliminary data provided by the US Census Bureau indicated that building permits for housing units in July tallied at 1.49 million, up 18.8pc from 1.26 million in June and 9.4pc above 1.36 million in July 2019. Single-family authorizations grew by 17pc to 983,000 units, compared to 840,000 units in June.
Construction starts rose by 22.6pc to 1.49 million over 1.22 million in June and witnessed a 23.4pc incline from July 2019. Single-family housing starts in July climbed 8.2pc to 940,000 units, compared to 849,000 units in June.
The completion of housing units was 3.6pc above 1.23 million in June, tallying at 1.28 million. Compared to July 2019, a 1.7pc increase was seen over 1.25 million. However, completed single-family housing fell by 1.8pc to 909,000 units, compared with 926,000 units in June.