New home construction in the United States saw a notable increase in the month of December, amid unseasonably mild temperatures, according to a Commerce Department report from Jan. 19. The report said that housing starts rose 1.4 percent to an annual rate of 1.702 million in December representing a 1 percent increase from the previous month. This was a jump from the revised rate of 1.678 million in November. Compared with December 2020, housing starts were up 2.5 percent. Economists revised their December estimates after they expected housing starts to drop to a rate of 1.650 million from the 1.679 million originally reported for November. Building permits spiked by 9.1 percent to an annual rate of 1.873 million from a revised rate of 1.717 million in November, and 6.5 percent from a year ago, according to the report. The permits, which are an indicator of future housing demand, were expected …