A monthly report, produced by the U.S. Bureau of the Census, on privately owned residential construction activity. The data shows how many new building permits have been issued and the number of housing units started. Also, it focuses on the number of housing units under construction and the number of housing units completed. The data gives an indication of the potential impact on the number of construction-related jobs, as well as giving some insight into what gross domestic product (GDP) data is likely to look like. One shortcoming of the data is that it is difficult to determine what type of housing is being constructed, since the only differentiation is between single-family housing and multi-family housing. The report has only a minimal impact on the financial markets.