WASHINGTON (MNI) - Construction spending unexpectedly fell 1.4% in April, with a declines in both residential and nonresidential building, data released by the Commerce Department Thursday morning showed.
Analysts had expected construction spending to rise 0.5% after a 0.2% decline previously reported for March. With the latest data, March construction was revised up sharply to a 1.1% increase from that 0.2% decline in the previous estimate, while February spending was revised up modestly to a 1.9% increase from the 1.8% gain previously reported. As a result, first quarter fixed investment could be revised up with the next GDP report scheduled for release on June 29.
Private residential construction spending fell 0.7% in the month, the first decline since September, though new home building was up 0.6% based on an MNI calculation. Single-family building jumped 0.8%, while multi-family building was down 0.2%.
Offsetting the solid gain in new home building, residential construction excluding new homes, which captures home remodelling, fell 2.9% in April after a 4.9% increase in March.
Private nonresidential construction was down 0.6% in April, a third straight decline. Declines in power, manufacturing, and commercial building more than offset an increase in office construction.
Public construction fell 3.7% in April. State and local government spending, the much larger portion of public construction, was down 3.5% after a 1.4% increase in March, while Federal government construction fell 5.7% in April after a 4.6% gain in March.
