2026.06.0201:59:37UTC+00Australia Building Permits Drop More than Estimated

Australia’s seasonally adjusted dwelling approvals fell 3.4% month-on-month to a three-month low of 16,710 units in April 2026, following a sharp 10.5% drop in March, preliminary data showed. The result was weaker than market expectations of a 1.5% decline, underscoring the impact of elevated borrowing costs in curbing housing construction activity. Approvals for private sector dwellings excluding houses decreased at a much slower rate (-3.6% vs. -25.7% in March), while approvals for private sector houses fell 1.0%, reversing a 0.5% rise in the previous month. By state, approvals declined in New South Wales (-9.5%), Victoria (-3.9%), and Western Australia (-7.4%), but increased in Queensland (0.3%) and South Australia (4.3%). Despite the monthly pullback, total dwelling approvals were 10.2% higher than a year earlier, up from a 9.3% annual gain in March, suggesting underlying resilience in residential construction demand.