Updated: 03-May-21 10:34 ET
| March Construction Spending |
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| Updated: 03-May-21 10:34 ET |
Highlights
- Total construction spending increased by 0.2% m/m in March (Briefing.com consensus 1.6%) after declining an upwardly revised 0.6% (from 0.8%) in February.
- Total private construction rose 0.7% m/m while total public construction spending decreased 1.5%.
Key Factors
- Total residential spending was up 1.7% m/m (and up 23.3% yr/yr) while total nonresidential spending was down 1.1% (and down 7.4% yr/yr).
- The increase in private construction spending was driven by a 1.7% increase in residential spending, which was paced by a 2.0% increase in new single family construction. Private nonresidential spending fell 0.9% m/m, weighed down by a 0.4% decline in power spending and a 0.5% drop in commercial spending.
- The decrease in public construction spending was driven by a 1.5% drop in nonresidential spending, which was paced by a 2.2% decline in highway and street spending and a 2.0% decline in educational spending.
Big Picture
- The key takeaway from the report is the ongoing strength in private residential construction spending, which is a byproduct of strong demand driven by a scarce supply of existing homes for sale.
| Category | MAR | FEB | JAN | DEC | NOV |
| Nominal (Current) Dollars | |||||
| Total Construction | 0.2% | -0.6% | 0.6% | 2.1% | 1.4% |
| Private | 0.7% | -0.3% | 0.8% | 2.7% | 1.5% |
| Residential | 1.7% | 0.1% | 1.2% | 5.0% | 3.1% |
| Nonresidential | -0.9% | -0.9% | 0.3% | -0.8% | -0.7% |
| Public | -1.5% | -1.6% | -0.4% | 0.2% | 1.1% |
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