According to the Department of Commerce, in seasonally adjusted terms, housing starts fell by 1.4% month-on-month to reach an annualised pace of 1.382m.

That was better than the decline to 1.350m that economists had anticipated.

However, the better-than-expected reading was offset by a downwards revision to the prior month's print from 1.427m to 1.401m.

Permits, which are considered to be a lead indicator for activity in the sector, slipped by 1.6% over the month to 1.33m (consensus: 1.37m).

In comparison to their level one year before, housing starts had declined by 21.8% and 29.9%, respectively.