Via the excellent George Theranou at UBS:
July residential approvals -9.7% m/m, & -28.5% y/y; a >6-year low at 155k
Residential building approvals slumped 9.7% m/m in Jul-19 (UBS: +0.5%, mkt: +0.0%, pre: -0.8%) to 155k a.r., the lowest level since Jan-13. The y/y slumped by -28% (after -25.0%). ‘Other’ (-18.4%, -44.2% y/y), mainly high rises of 4+ storeys, has collapsed. Houses were also weaker (-3.3%, & -16.6% y/y). Meanwhile, renovations (i.e. alterations & additions) are surprisingly resilient, showing tentative signs of improvement (+0.4%, +4.8% y/y), despite the ~20% y/y fall in home sales.