Construction Spending Falls 0.7% – Residential Up, Non-Residential Down

New construction spending fell for the second straight month in January, dropping 0.7% on a seasonally adjusted basis. These two months followed a brief period of modest construction spending growth. The month’s decline was due to a sharp drop in non-residential construction, which fell 6.9%over the month. In contrast, residential spending increased by 5.3%. Public sector spending, which had been declining in recent months, posted a modest increase of 0.1%.

On a year-ago basis, total construction spending was 5.9%lower. Private residential spending was down 7.7%, and private non-residential spending was down% percent. Public sector spending was up 2.7%from a year earlier.

m/m % change	Jan	Dec	Nov	Oct	Sep	Aug
Total	-0.7	-1.6	0.1	1.1	1.2	-0.9
Private Residential	5.3	-1.7	1.2	4.0	1.2	-6.2
Private Non Res.	-6.9	-1.5	2.6	0.7	2.0	0.4
Public	0.1	-1.7	-2.6	-0.7	0.6	2.1