Daily Roundup of Key US Economic Data for Sept. 17

02:00 PM EDT, 09/17/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Housing starts fell by 8.5% to a 1.307 million annual rate in August, well below expectations, with single-family housing starts and multi-family starts both lower.

Building permits fell by 3.7% to a 1.312 million rate in August. Both single-family and multi-family permits declined. Homes permitted but not started also fell, suggesting that starts could decline further in the coming months.

The number of homes under construction fell in the month, but completions surged, which should add to the supply of homes in the near term. Completions are still 8.4% below their year-ago level.

The Mortgage Bankers Association reported a 29.7% surge in mortgage applications in the week ended Sept. 12 after a 9.2% increase in the previous week, as mortgage rates fell to their lowest level since October.

Total crude oil inventories fell by 8.8 million barrels in the week ended Sept. 12, with commercial oil inventories down 9.3 million barrels and stocks in the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve up 500,000 barrels. Gasoline inventories declined in the week while distillate inventories increased.

The Q3 GDPnow estimate from the Atlanta Fed is for a 3.3% gain, revised down from a 3.4% gain reported on Tuesday. The next update is scheduled for Sept. 26.

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