"US Housing Starts Plummet to 5-Month Low, First-time Buyers Struggle"
Housing starts plunged 14.8 percent in January, despite positive revisions, marking a bad start to 2024. Building permits for privately-owned housing units also decreased by 1.5 percent from December, while existing home sales fell to their lowest level since 2010. Additionally, retail sales took an unexpected 0.8 percent dive in January, indicating a challenging start to the year for the economy.