Construction of new homes fell in October, fresh evidence that the housing industry remains under duress.

Construction of new homes and apartments sank 11.7 percent last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 519,000 units, the Commerce Department said Wednesday. But that was mainly because apartment construction, which represents less than 20 percent of the housing market, fell by more than 40 percent. The much larger single-family home category fell 1.1 percent.

The overall drop marked the poorest showing since April 2009, when construction dropped to 477,000 units -- the lowest level on records dating back to 1959. Construction of new homes and apartments is 77 percent below its peak during the housing boom of 2.27 million units in January 2006.

The weakness last month reflected a small decline in construction of single-family homes and big decrease in construction of apartments and other multifamily units.

Separately, the Labor Department said inflation was essentially tame last month. A steep rise in gasoline prices drove the consumer price index up 0.2 percent in October, the fourth straight monthly increase. But excluding volatile food and energy costs, core consumer prices were unchanged for the third straight month. In the past year, the core index has risen only 0.6 percent, the smallest increase since the index began in 1957.

The weak housing market has been a major drag on the broader economy, which is struggling to add enough jobs to lower the 9.6 percent unemployment rate. A huge backlog of foreclosed properties has lowered home prices and made it difficult for builders to compete.