The US Commerce Department reported that housing starts in June rose 19% from the previous month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.427 million units, significantly exceeding market expectations of 1.31 million units. Meanwhile, building permits, a leading indicator, fell 3.0% to 1.367 million units, below the forecast of 1.4 million units. Single-family housing starts edged down 0.2% to 895,000 units.