WASHINGTON - The sharp surge in the US housing market in November brought some relief to the country's turbulent economy.

The Department of Commerce said Tuesday that ground has been broken on 685,000 privately owned housing projects in November, 9.3 percent up from a month earlier, and the highest level since April 2010.

The Commerce Department attributes the sharp surge to the unexpected increase in the construction of new apartments.

Apartment starts surged 32.2 percent in the same month to 230,000 units, after a sharp decline of 20.2 percent in October.

Single-family housing starts in November were at a rate of 447,000, 2.3 percent up compared with the revised October figure of 437,000.

Meanwhile, building permits, a major gauge of future construction, climbed at an annual rate of 681,000, up 20.7 percent from last year. As a major barometer of the US economy, the housing market started declining since the outbreak of the global economic crisis in 2008.

According to official statistics, each new home built creates 3 jobs and brings in $90,000 in taxes.