Confidence among U.S. single-family homebuilders slipped in January after four straight monthly increases, and builders called for a new softwood lumber agreement with Canada to ease shortages and lower prices, a survey showed on Tuesday.
Other data showed factory activity in New York state slumped this month amid surging COVID-19 infections, but manufacturers remained upbeat about business conditions over the next six months. The reports supported views that the economy started the year on a soft note because of high inflation, shortages and raging coronavirus cases, driven by the Omicron variant.
According to the NAHB, higher material costs and shortages were adding weeks to typical single-family home construction times. The economy is struggling with high inflation, mostly the result of the pandemic, which has snarled supply chains. The NAHB survey was conducted during the first two weeks of January and does not fully reflect the recent jump in mortgage interest rates. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.45% during the week ending Jan. 13, up from 3.22% in the prior week, according to data from mortgage finance agency Freddie Mac.
A separate report from the New York Federal Reserve on Tuesday showed its "Empire State" index of current business conditions plunged 32.6 points to a reading of -0.7 this month. This was the first negative reading since June 2020.