U.S. construction spending climbs in October

ARLINGTON, VA. — Overall construction spending in the United States reached a record high in October, according to analysis of new government data by the Associated General Contractors of America.

Construction spending in October totalled $1.24 trillion at a seasonally adjusted annual rate, an increase of 1.4 per cent from the September total, the association reported in a Dec. 1 statement. Public construction spending jumped 3.9 per cent, led by a rise of 10.9 per cent in educational construction. Private non-residential spending rose 0.9 per cent for the month, while private residential spending increased 0.4 per cent.

“There was healthy growth this October in both public and private construction spending, with an exceptionally strong surge in public educational construction,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist, in the statement. “But for the first 10 months of 2017 combined, public investment, specifically in infrastructure, has fallen short of the already inadequate amounts posted in the same period of 2016.”

In contrast to the increase between September and October, public construction spending year-to-date shrank 3.4 per cent from January through October combined, compared with the same months of 2016, with year-to-date losses concentrated in infrastructure categories, the association noted. Public spending year-to-date on highway and street construction declined 4.3 per cent from 2016; spending on transportation (transit, airports, rail and ports) slipped 1.6 per cent; investment in sewage and waste disposal dropped 15.9 per cent; and water supply construction dollars declined 9.6 per cent.

In contrast to infrastructure spending, school and university construction increased 2.2 per cent from 2016 to 2017, the statement indicated. Private residential spending rose 11.2 per cent year-to-date, with gains for new single-family construction (9 per cent) and multi-family (3.9 per cent) and improvements to existing housing (17.2 per cent). Private non-residential spending year-to-date edged up 1.5 per cent. The largest private nonresidential category, power (electric power plus oil and gas field and pipeline construction) declined 2.5 per cent year-to-date, while the second-largest segment, commercial (retail, warehouse and farm construction) rose 14.7 per cent as warehouse construction improved.