Global| Mar 01 2016U.S. Construction Activity Increases Sharply
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
The value of construction put-in-place increased 1.5% during January (9.5% y/y) after a 0.6% December gain, revised from 0.1%. It was the strongest rise since May, and exceeded the 0.5% increase expected in the Action Economics [...]
The value of construction put-in-place increased 1.5% during January (9.5% y/y) after a 0.6% December gain, revised from 0.1%. It was the strongest rise since May, and exceeded the 0.5% increase expected in the Action Economics Forecast Survey. During the last three months, activity grew an average 0.5% per month.
Strength in public sector building led the January gain with a 4.5% jump (9.0% y/y), following a 3.3% December increase. During the last three months, activity grew an average 1.7%. Highway and street construction jumped 14.7% (31.7% y/y) while commercial construction surged 6.5% (63.1% y/y). Power construction rebounded 5.0% (-8.7% y/y), but health care building declined 5.0% (-1.9% y/y).
Building activity in the private sector increased 0.5% (9.7% y/y) following a 0.3% December decline. During the last three months, activity improved an average 1.7%. A 1.0% increase (11.3% y/y) in nonresidential building led the monthly increase. Residential building activity remained unchanged (8.0% y/y) after a 0.8% rise. Multi-family construction rose 2.6% (29.6% y/y) following a 2.7% increase. Single-family building eased 0.2% (+6.9% y/y) after a 0.9% rise. Spending on improvements fell 0.7% (+1.2% y/y), and has been declining for ten months.
The construction spending figures are in Haver's USECON database and the expectations figure is contained in the AS1REPNA database.
| Construction Put in Place (SA, %) | Jan | Dec | Nov | Jan Y/Y | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 1.5 | 0.6 | -0.5 | 9.5 | 10.5 | 9.6 | 6.6 |
| Private | 0.5 | -0.3 | 0.2 | 9.7 | 12.4 | 12.9 | 11.3 |
| Residential | 0.0 | 0.8 | 1.2 | 8.0 | 12.8 | 14.4 | 19.9 |
| Nonresidential | 1.0 | -1.5 | -0.9 | 11.3 | 11.9 | 11.3 | 3.6 |
| Public | 4.5 | 3.3 | -2.5 | 9.0 | 5.7 | 1.9 | -3.1 |
Tom Moeller
AuthorMore in Author Profile »Prior to joining Haver Analytics in 2000, Mr. Moeller worked as the Economist at Chancellor Capital Management from 1985 to 1999. There, he developed comprehensive economic forecasts and interpreted economic data for equity and fixed income portfolio managers. Also at Chancellor, Mr. Moeller worked as an equity analyst and was responsible for researching and rating companies in the economically sensitive automobile and housing industries for investment in Chancellor’s equity portfolio. Prior to joining Chancellor, Mr. Moeller was an Economist at Citibank from 1979 to 1984. He also analyzed pricing behavior in the metals industry for the Council on Wage and Price Stability in Washington, D.C. In 1999, Mr. Moeller received the award for most accurate forecast from the Forecasters' Club of New York. From 1990 to 1992 he was President of the New York Association for Business Economists. Mr. Moeller earned an M.B.A. in Finance from Fordham University, where he graduated in 1987. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from George Washington University.
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