New residential construction projects or privately-owned housing starts, a key indicator of economic strength, declined 4.1 percent in January, as some regions in the country face freezing weather conditions along with continuing supply chain issues. “Privately‐owned housing starts in January were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,638,000. This is 4.1 percent below the revised December estimate of 1,708,000, but is 0.8 percent above the January 2021 rate of 1,625,000,” according to the monthly new-residential construction report (pdf) published on Feb. 17 by the U.S. Commerce Department. “Single‐family housing starts in January were at a rate of 1,116,000; this is 5.6 percent below the revised December figure of 1,182,000. The January rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 510,000.” Region-wise, housing starts in the Midwest for single units fell from 202,000 in December to 144,000 in January, a decline of over 28 percent. In the …