US construction spending on the upswing in November

U.S. construction spending ticked up in the month of November, buoyed by growing private-sector demand to build homes.

Construction spending reached a seasonally adjusted rate of $934 billion in November, rising 1 percent since October and 5.9 percent over November 2012, according to an analysis of new Census Bureau data by the Associated General Contractors of America.

Private residential construction spending increased 1.9 percent from October to November, and jumped 17 percent from the same period in 2012. Private nonresidential spending was up 2.7 percent for the month and 1 percent year-over-year, while public construction dipped 1.8 percent from October and 0.2 percent from November 2012.

“The nonresidential construction spending figures are even more positive than they appear, with most categories now positive year-over year,” Ken Simonson, AGC’s chief economist, said in a release. “The outlook appears favorable for many types of private nonresidential and multi-family construction, but remains flat or negative for public spending.”

The largest increase in construction spending over the past 12 months was in new multi-family construction, according to the report, which was up 0.9 percent in November and a whopping 36 percent year-over-year. — Julie Strickland