U.S. construction spending in December was 0.2 percent below the revised November estimate, yet still 4.2 percent over the December 2015 figures, according to numbers released by the U.S. Census Bureau. Also releasing its year-end numbers, the Bureau places the 2016 value of construction at $1.162 trillion, which is 4.5 percent above the $1.112 trillion spent in 2015.
Compared with the November revised estimate of $1.184 trillion, construction spending in December dipped slightly to $1.181 trillion. Private homebuilding rose 0.5 percent to $466.9 billion in December, compared to the revised November estimate of $464.8 billion. Residential construction was up 5.1 percent for the year, compared with 2015.
On the nonresidential side, spending was essentially flat from November to December, at $430.1 billion for each month. Total nonresidential spending in 2016 increased by 4.1 percent, compared with the previous year. In addition, compared with 2015, total private construction for the year was up 6.4 percent.
Public construction was down 1.7 percent in December ($284.5 billion) from November’s $289.6 billion, and down a total of 1 percent for 2016, compared with 2015. Segment declines for the month of December included educational construction (down 2.2 percent) and highway construction (down 0.6 percent), compared with November.
The Bureau’s value of construction reports for December 2016, including residential, non-residential, state and local and federal statistics, are available here.
