National nonresidential construction spending declined 1.8% in June, totaling $773.8 billion on a seasonally adjusted annualized basis—a 2.3% increase compared to the same time a year ago, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data published today. Public nonresidential spending fell 3.7% in June, but is up 6.4% year over year, while private nonresidential spending fell 0.3% on a monthly basis and is up 0.4% from June 2018.
Among the 16 nonresidential construction spending categories tracked by the Census Bureau, seven experienced increases in monthly spending, although only the conservation and development (+3.8%) and commercial (+1.3%) categories increased by more than 1%. While spending in several categories fell for the month, significant decreases in the publicly driven educational (-6.5%) and highway and street (-6.3%) categories accounted for nearly all of the monthly decline.
“Like the balance of the U.S. economy, nonresidential construction spending appears to be softening, albeit gradually,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “Private nonresidential construction spending has been trending lower for several months, and segments like office and lodging are no longer the drivers of construction spending growth that they had been, likely due to growing concerns about market saturation.
“The dip in public construction may have been merely temporary, which is likely the case given the ongoing strength of state and local government finances.” said Basu. “And with the economy still adding substantial numbers of jobs, wages growing at or near a decade-high pace, consumers continuing to spend and property values remaining stable, local and state governments should continue to experience solid income, retail and real estate tax collections. All things being equal, that should help fuel infrastructure outlays, especially given still very low borrowing costs.
“While many observers continue to focus on issues such as trade disputes, high levels of corporate debt and asset prices that are susceptible to sharp declines, the U.S. construction industry’s most significant source of uncertainty may be the pending insolvency of the Highway Trust Fund,” said Basu. “That insolvency is now a mere two years away, and if policymakers fail to act expeditiously, state and local policymakers may choose to postpone certain projects given the rising uncertainty of federal funding. The highway/street and transportation categories are especially vulnerable to such dynamics.”
Related Stories
Market Data | May 12, 2020
ABC’s Construction Backlog Indicator falls in April; Contractor Confidence rebounds from historic lows
Nonresidential construction backlog is down 0.4 months compared to the March 2020 ABC survey and 1.7 months from April 2019.
Market Data | May 12, 2020
6 must reads for the AEC industry today: May 12, 2020
A 13-point plan to reduce coronavirus deaths in nursing homes and Bjarke Ingels discusses building on Mars.
Market Data | May 11, 2020
Interest in eSports is booming amid COVID-19
The industry has proved largely immune to the COVID-19 pandemic due to its prompt transition into online formats and sudden spike in interest from traditional sports organizations.
Market Data | May 11, 2020
6 must reads for the AEC industry today: May 11, 2020
Nashville residential tower will rise 416 feet and the construction industry loses 975,000 jobs.
Market Data | May 8, 2020
Construction industry loses 975,000 jobs in April as new association survey shows deteriorating demand for construction projects
Association partner Procore also releases near real-time construction data measuring impacts of coronavirus as association calls for new measures.
Market Data | May 8, 2020
7 must reads for the AEC industry today: May 8, 2020
The death of the office and Colorado's first multifamily project to receive WELL Precertification.
Market Data | May 7, 2020
5 must reads for the AEC industry today: May 7, 2020
5 memory care communities with a strong sense of mission and making jobsites safer in the COVID-19 world.
Market Data | May 6, 2020
6 must reads for the AEC industry today: May 6, 2020
5 questions engineers will ask after COVID-19 and coronavirus threatens push for denser housing.
Market Data | May 5, 2020
5 must reads for the AEC industry today: May 5, 2020
A new temporary hospital pops up in N.J., and apartment firms' reactivation plans begin to take shape.
Market Data | May 4, 2020
6 must reads for the AEC industry today: May 4, 2020
How working from home is influencing design and is this the end of the open office?