EmailTotal construction spending increased 0.4% in April after increasing a downwardly revised 0.1% (from 1.4%) in March. The Briefing.com consensus expected construction spending to decrease 0.5%.
Private construction strengthened, increasing 1.7% in May, up from 0.4% in April.
Budgetary problems at the state and local level were instrumental in public construction spending declining 1.9% in May. This is the third consecutive month of construction declines. Given budget concerns, the trend will probably continue for the next few months.
Private residential construction increased 3.1% in May after falling 0.7% in April. The move was a little surprising considering both total housing starts and the number of homes currently under construction both declined this month. The gains in construction came from a 7.6% increase in home improvement projects. These expenditures tend to be volatile and reversal is likely next month.
Private nonresidential construction increased 0.5% as strong gains in communication (4.7%), religious (3.9%), and power (3.2%) outweighed losses in lodging (-4.4%), office (-3.2%), and commercial (-1.3%).
