July 10, 2006: Construction Spending Drops but There Are Bright Spots
WASHINGTON - "Construction spending dropped in May for the second straight month but there are plenty of bright spots amidst the gloom," said Ken Simonson, chief economist for the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC). Simonson was commenting on the latest report from the Census Bureau that showed the value of construction put in place fell at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 0.4 percent in May, following a dip of 0.2 percent in April.
"Private residential construction dropped 0.8 percent and private nonresidential spending fell 0.3 percent for the month, more than offsetting a rise of 0.7 percent in public construction," Simonson observed. "But nonresidential construction remained much stronger than a year ago. Private nonresidential construction was down slightly from April to May but up 13 percent compared to May 2005. Every category was in the plus column year-to-date.