Housing Starts Hit 9 Year High:

The Commerce Department showed that U.S. new-home construction jumped to a nine-year high in October driven by a strong pickup for single-family housing.

Residential starts surged 25.5 percent to a 1.32 million annualized rate, the fastest since August 2007 and exceeding the highest market projections. The increase from September was the biggest since July 1982. Multifamily-home building was also up, by a whopping 68.8 percent.

The figures indicate the housing market has been making great progress due to increased hiring and healthier finances that have been driving demand.

Single-family house construction rose 10.7 percent to an 869,000 rate, the highest since October 2007.

Permits, a proxy for future construction, increased 0.3 percent to a 1.23 million annualized rate. They were projected to fall to a 1.19 million pace, according to the survey median.

The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo index of home builder sentiment in November held near the highest level of the year, figures showed on Wednesday. Readings greater than 50 mean more respondents reported market conditions as good. A measure of prospective buyer traffic rose.