National nonresidential construction spending increased by 0.7% in March, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of data published today by the U.S. Census Bureau. On a seasonally adjusted annualized basis, nonresidential spending totaled $997.1 billion for the month.
Spending increased on a monthly basis in 8 of the 16 nonresidential subcategories. Private nonresidential spending rose 1.0%, while public nonresidential construction spending increased 0.2% in March.
“Nonresidential construction spending increased for the 10th time in the past 11 months,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “As has been the case for the past several months, though, the expansion in nonresidential investment is attributable to manufacturing. Were it not for a 4.6% increase in manufacturing-related spending, the nonresidential category would have been flat in March. Because this data is not adjusted for inflation, real nonresidential construction spending excluding manufacturing actually contracted in March."
“Contractors remain optimistic about their sales and profit margins over the next six months, according to ABC’s Construction Confidence Index,” said Basu. “Given the surprising resilience of construction activity in the face of ongoing interest rate increases and pervasive fears of recession, this confidence has proved justified. Spending has increased over the past year in every nonresidential subsector except for the power category, and multifamily construction is up 23.0% over the past year. The only construction category that is meaningfully affected by interest rate increases is single-family construction; spending is down 22.9% since March 2022.”
Related Stories
Market Data | Oct 5, 2020
Construction spending rises 1.4% in August as residential boom outweighs private nonresidential decline and flat public categories
Construction officials caution that demand for non-residential construction will continue to stagnate without new federal coronavirus recovery measures, including infrastructure and liability reform.
Market Data | Oct 5, 2020
7 must reads for the AEC industry today: October 5, 2020
Zaha Hadid unveils 2 Murray Road and the AEC industry is weathering COVID-19 better than most.
Market Data | Oct 2, 2020
AEC industry is weathering COVID-19 better than most
Nearly one-third of firms have had layoffs, more than 90% have experienced project delays.
Market Data | Oct 2, 2020
6 must reads for the AEC industry today: October 2, 2020
BIG imagines how to live on the moon and smart buildings stand on good data.
Market Data | Oct 1, 2020
Two-thirds of metros shed construction jobs from August 2019 to August 2020
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land and Brockton-Bridgewater-Easton, Mass. have worst 12-month losses, while Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, Ind. and Niles-Benton Harbor, Mich. top job gainers.
Market Data | Oct 1, 2020
6 must reads for the AEC industry today: October 1, 2020
David Adjaye to receive 2021 Royal Gold Medal for Architecture and SOM reimagines the former Cook County Hospital.
Market Data | Sep 30, 2020
6 must reads for the AEC industry today: September 30, 2020
Heatherwick Studio designs The Cove for San Francisco and Washington, D.C.'s first modular apartment building.
Market Data | Sep 29, 2020
6 must reads for the AEC industry today: September 29, 2020
Renovation to Providence's downtown library is completed and Amazon to build 1,500 new last-mile warehouses.
Market Data | Sep 25, 2020
5 must reads for the AEC industry today: September 25, 2020
AIA releases latest 2030 Commitment results and news delivery robots could generate trillions for U.S. economy.
Market Data | Sep 24, 2020
6 must reads for the AEC industry today: September 24, 2020
SOM's new waterfront neighborhood and a portable restroom designed for mobility.
