U.S. housing starts sink in November for third consecutive month

WASHINGTON, Dec. 20 (Xinhua) -- U.S. housing starts sank for the third month in a row in November amid record high mortgage rates and the worst inflation in 40 years.

Construction of new homes dropped 0.5 percent in November, data from the Commerce Department showed Tuesday.

Meanwhile, building applications slumped 11.2 percent from October.

Permits to build single-family houses also fell 7.1 percent to the lowest level in over two years.