Little Change in Construction Spending as Summer Ends

Total construction spending in the U.S. in August was estimated by the Census Bureau today to be at the seasonally adjusted annual rate of $961.0 billion, down 0.8 percent from spending in July and 5.0 percent higher than the $915.3 in construction outlays in August 2013.  Total spending in June was revised up from the original estimate of $963.7 billion to $968.8 billion.

Construction spending in August was estimated at $89.3 billion on a non-annualized basis compared to $87.6 billion in July.  Year-to-date spending this year is estimated at $623.1 billion compared to $583.2 billion at the same point in 2013.

Spending on private construction was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $685.0 billion, also 0.8 percent below the revised July figure (from $701.7 billion) of $690.3 billion and a year-over-year increase of 6.3 percent.  On a non-adjusted basis there was $61.2 billion in private construction put in place, up from $60.4 billion in July and $59.2 billion in August 2013.  Year-to-date expenditures total $446.7 billion, a 9.7 percent increase over the $407.2 billion spent by the same time in 2013.

Private spending on residential construction slipped 0.1 percent in August from $352.1 billion to $351.7 billion on an annualized basis.  The August number was 3.7 percent higher than the $339.2 billion spent on private residential construction one year earlier.

On a non-annualized basis residential construction expenditures totaled $33.3 billion during the month compared to $32.1 billion in July and $59.2 billion a year earlier.

Year to date residential construction spending at the end of August stood at $231.6 billion compared to $214.4 billion at the same point in 2013, an increase of 8.0 percent.

Publicly funded construction in August was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $275.9 billion, down 0.9 percent from July and a 1.9 percent increase from August 2013.  Public spending on residential construction was $5.5 billion, a 3.3 percent increase from July but down nearly 15 percent from the level of spending a year earlier.