Australia's housing construction boom beginning to slow down

Sydney

AUSTRALIA is witnessing a cooling off in its biggest-ever home-building boom as approvals for new projects sank 17.2 per cent in April, a turnaround that could undermine policymakers' hopes for solid economic growth over the next two years.

Building approvals have been on a decline since last August, with the once-booming apartment sector the biggest hit, data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows.