Nonresidential Construction Spending Up 1.9 Percent in December
Posted
02/1/2012
Ending 2011 on a
relatively strong note, total nonresidential construction spending
increased 1.9 percent in December to $567.8 billion, according to
the Feb. 1 construction spending report by the U.S. Census Bureau
(see graph below). Year-over-year, total nonresidential
construction spending is up 4.5 percent.
Private nonresidential
construction spending jumped 3.3 percent for the month and was up
11.4 percent from the same time last year. Public nonresidential
construction spending increased 0.5 percent from November, but was
down 1.8 percent from December 2010.
Ten of the sixteen
nonresidential construction subsectors posted increases in spending
for the month. The largest gains came in manufacturing, up 13.4
percent; communication, 6.6 percent higher; and power, up 2.7
percent. Six nonresidential construction subsectors experienced
increases in spending during a 12-month period. These include
manufacturing, up 44.2 percent; commercial, up 14.0 percent; power,
11.7 percent higher; education, up 4.4 percent; public safety, up
3.3 percent; and highway and street construction, 2.4 percent
higher.
In contrast,
construction subsectors posting the largest monthly decreases in
spending include lodging, down 2.3 percent; public safety, 1.9
percent lower; and amusement and recreation, down 1.5 percent.
Subsectors with the largest year-over-year decreases in spending
include religious, down 19.4 percent; lodging, 15.2 percent lower;
transportation, down 9.8 percent; and conservation and
development-related construction, down 9.0
percent.
Residential
construction spending inched up 0.7 percent in December and was up
3.8 percent year-over-year. Overall, total construction spending -
which includes both nonresidential and residential - rose 1.5
percent in for the month, and was up 4.3 percent compared to
December 2010.