NYC construction industry recovery lagging -report

NEW YORK Nov 30 (Reuters) - Nearly 700 New York City construction projects were stalled as of October, suggesting construction is lagging the broader economy in recovering from the recession, the New York Building Congress said on Tuesday.

The number of stalled projects has risen steadily this year, and the October figure represented a 52 percent increase from a year ago, the group said.

"The city's stalled construction sites serve as a highly visible reminder of the recession's impact, but they also offer the opportunity to create jobs and spur economic development," the group's president Richard Anderson said in a statement.

Almost half of the stalled projects were in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, while about a quarter were in the borough of Queens.

Among projects where work was started and then stopped, 67 percent are residential buildings, the group said.

The report was based on New York City's Department of Buildings inspection records. (Reporting by Edith Honan; Editing by James Dalgleish)