Construction spending has increased every month in 2015, and will likely support the economy during the last three months of the year as the US faces headwinds from energy firm spending cuts and a stronger dollar.
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Investments in construction for October amounted to $1.107 trillion.
Spending on federal construction surged up by 19.2% to USD27.6 billion, while spending on state and local construction edged down by 0.1% to USD277.3 billion. Construction spending in October was buoyed by a 0.8 percent rise in private spending, which touched its highest level since January 2008.
National Association of Home Builders economics department analyst Na Zhao bores into Census construction spending data to dissect the residential trends from the broader trajectory of construction industry outlays.
The consensus estimate by economists surveyed by Bloomberg News called for a rise of 0.6% in construction spending for October. The monthly growth rate of multifamily construction fell to 1.4% in October from relatively higher rates in August (8%) and September (6%). Non-residential construction was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $403.4 billion in October, 0.6 percent above the revised September estimate of $400.8 billion.
Construction investments for the month of October achieved its highest level of growth in nonresidential, residential as well as public categories. “My only concern is whether contractors will be able to find enough qualified workers to undertake all of the projects”.
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“The breadth of the expansion and the large number of categories with double-digit increases suggests that construction will continue growing well into 2016”, added Simonson.
