Global| Dec 01 2016U.S. Construction Activity Strengthens
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
The value of construction put-in-place increased 0.5% during October following little change in September, revised from -0.4%. September's figure also was revised up to 0.5%. October's reading was the highest level of activity since [...]
The value of construction put-in-place increased 0.5% during October following little change in September, revised from -0.4%. September's figure also was revised up to 0.5%. October's reading was the highest level of activity since March. Construction was up 3.4% y/y following stronger growth from 2012 through 2015. The latest rise matched expectations in the Action Economics Forecast Survey.
Building activity in the private sector slipped 0.2% (+4.7% y/y), reflecting a 2.1% decline (+4.8% y/y) in nonresidential construction. Office construction fell 2.0% (+28.4% y/y), while commercial construction eased 0.7% (+6.1% y/y). Transportation building activity strengthened 5.1% (-9.5% y/y), but power construction declined 4.3% (+3.3% y/y).
Residential building increased 1.6% (4.7`% y/y) after a 0.6% improvement. Multi-family building activity improved 2.8% (11.4% y/y), the third straight month of strength. Single-family building also improved 2.8% (-1.6% y/y), and made up declines during the spring and summer. The value of improvements declined 0.6% (+13.0% y/y) after a 1.2% rise.
Public sector building activity jumped 2.8% (-0.6% y/y), but that left it 4.3% below the February peak. Commercial construction rebounded 10.4% (23.3% y/y) following a sharp September decline, and education facility activity increased 4.1% (11.7% y/y). Highway & street construction, which is roughly one-third of the public sector total, improved 1.9% (0.7% y/y) following a 2.8% September rebound.
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, %) | Oct | Sep | Aug | Oct Y/Y | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 0.5 | -0.0 | 0.5 | 3.4 | 10.3 | 11.4 | 6.3 |
| Private | -0.2 | -0.1 | 0.4 | 4.7 | 12.5 | 15.4 | 10.9 |
| Residential | 1.6 | 0.6 | -0.1 | 4.7 | 16.8 | 14.6 | 20.1 |
| Nonresidential | -2.1 | -0.8 | 0.9 | 4.8 | 8.1 | 16.3 | 2.7 |
| Public | 2.8 | 0.4 | 0.9 | -0.6 | 4.5 | 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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