Nonresidential construction spending increases slightly in June

National nonresidential construction spending increased 0.1% in June, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of data published today by the U.S. Census Bureau. Spending is up 18% over the past 12 months. On a seasonally adjusted annualized basis, nonresidential spending totaled $1.07 trillion in June.

Spending increased on a monthly basis in 12 of the 16 nonresidential subcategories. Private nonresidential spending was virtually unchanged, while public nonresidential construction spending rose 0.3% in June.

“Nonresidential construction spending growth downshifted over the past two months,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “While stakeholders can expect ongoing spending growth in public nonresidential construction segments as more Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act monies flow into the economy, private developer-driven activity appears to be drying up in the context of higher costs of capital and tighter credit conditions.

“Among other things, these dynamics will translate into larger spreads in performance among contractors,” said Basu. “While those that focus on public work stand to remain busy for years to come, those who specialize in meeting the needs of developers of office buildings, hotels and shopping centers are likely to struggle to support backlog going forward. The good news is that there remain private construction segments associated with rosier prospects, including manufacturing, data centers and healthcare.”