BoJ monetary policy unchanged, US housing starts jump to 4-year high

The Bank of Japan ended its monetary policy meeting on Tuesday without introducing fresh stimulus measures. The policy rate was left between zero and 0.1 percent.

In the US, determined easing by the Federal Reserve appears to have helped the housing market recover. Housing starts rose 3.6 percent to a 894,000 annual rate in October, the highest since July 2008. Building permits fell 2.7 percent though.

Bill McBride notes that despite the increase so far, “starts in 2012 will still be the 4th lowest year since the Census Bureau started tracking starts in 1959”.

However, he also thinks that the recovery is sustainable and that the “growth in housing starts should continue over the next few years”.