By James Glynn
SYDNEY--The number of Australian home building permits rose strongly in February, signaling lower interest rates may be boosting activity in a previously lackluster sector of the economy.
Approvals to build or renovate houses and apartments gained 3.1% from January, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said Thursday. Economists had expected a gain of 2.5% on the previous month, when approvals fell 2.0%.
The Reserve Bank of Australia has cut interest rates by 1.75 percentage points since November 2011 in a bid to revive activity in weaker parts of the economy like home building. The latest cut, in December, took the cash rate to 3%, matching a low reached in 2009 in the aftermath of the global financial crisis.
On Tuesday, the central bank left its benchmark rate unchanged for the third-straight month, signaling confidence that the most rate-sensitive parts of the economy are responding to the cuts.
Building approvals rose 12.8% in February from a year earlier, the ABS said. Permits to build houses rose 0.5% from a month earlier, while approvals for apartments, townhouses and other dwellings rose 1.5%.
-Write to James Glynn at james.glynn@wsj.com
SYDNEY--The number of Australian home building permits rose strongly in February, signaling lower interest rates may be boosting activity in a previously lackluster sector of the economy.
Approvals to build or renovate houses and apartments gained 3.1% from January, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said Thursday. Economists had expected a gain of 2.5% on the previous month, when approvals fell 2.0%.
The Reserve Bank of Australia has cut interest rates by 1.75 percentage points since November 2011 in a bid to revive activity in weaker parts of the economy like home building. The latest cut, in December, took the cash rate to 3%, matching a low reached in 2009 in the aftermath of the global financial crisis.
On Tuesday, the central bank left its benchmark rate unchanged for the third-straight month, signaling confidence that the most rate-sensitive parts of the economy are responding to the cuts.
Building approvals rose 12.8% in February from a year earlier, the ABS said. Permits to build houses rose 0.5% from a month earlier, while approvals for apartments, townhouses and other dwellings rose 1.5%.
-Write to James Glynn at james.glynn@wsj.com
