May Construction Spending Drops 0.8%

WASHINGTON - Construction spending declined for a second straight month in May, falling 0.8% and far below the 0.5% rise expected, data released by the Commerce Department Friday morning showed.

April construction was revised lower to a 2.0% decline from the previously reported 1.8% drop, while March spending was revised up by a tenth to a 1.6% gain.

Private residential spending was flat in the month. New home building was down 0.7% based on an MNI calculation, with single-family building falling 1.3% partly offset by a 1.8% rise in multi-family building.

Residential construction excluding new homes, which captures home remodeling, rose 1.4% in May after a 6.8% fall in April. April's level was revised down from the initial estimate of a 3.2% drop, according to an MNI calculation.

Nonresidential private construction fell 0.7%, with manufacturing construction down 1.9%, power construction down 0.2%, commercial construction down 1.6% and office construction down 0.4%.

Public construction fell 2.3% in May. State and local government spending, the much larger portion of public construction, plunged 3.0%, the biggest decline since November 2014, after a 2.2% drop in April. Federal government construction rebounded with a 7.5% gain in May, the largest rise since October 2015, after a 3.9% fall in April.

Market News International is a real-time global news service for fixed-income and foreign exchange market professionals. See www.marketnews.com.

Market News International is a real-time global news service for fixed-income and foreign exchange market professionals. See www.marketnews.com.
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