U.S. consumer prices posted a second-straight record decline last month. The consumer price index dropped 1.7% last month on a seasonally adjusted basis, the Labor Department said, the largest drop since the government started compiling the figures in 1947.

The drop was well in excess of the 1.3% decline Wall Street economists had expected.

The core CPI was unchanged last month following October’s decline, which was the first in more than 25 years.

Consumer prices rose 1.1% on a year-over-year basis in November, which is below the U.S. Federal Reserve’s 1.5% to 2% target range. Last month’s annual rate matched the lowest reading since February 1965 and marks a big reversal since July, when the year-over-year rate reached 5.6%. The core CPI, however, was up 2% from last year, suggesting the U.S. isn’t yet at serious risk of economy-wide deflation.

Financial markets expect the Fed to lower official interest rates by at least one-half percentage point to just 0.5%. The decision is expected Tuesday around 14:15 ET.

Separately, U.S. home construction took its biggest tumble in 24 years during November, falling to a record low, while a sign of future building also plummeted.

Housing starts decreased 18.9% to a seasonally adjusted 625,000 annual rate compared to the prior month, after dropping 6.4% in October to 771,000, the U.S. Commerce Department said Tuesday. Originally, Commerce reported October starts fell 4.5% to 791,000.

The November decrease was much bigger than Wall Street expected. Economists surveyed had forecast a 5.2% drop to an annual rate of 750,000. The 18.9% drop was the sharpest since 26.4% in March 1984 and carried housing starts to a record low.

Year over year, housing starts were 47.0% below the level of construction in Nov. 2007.

IE