The U.S. Census Bureau reported Wednesday morning that construction spending in December rose by 0.2% to an estimated seasonally adjusted annual rate of about $1.1815 trillion, below the downwardly revised estimate of $1.182 trillion in November. Compared with December 2015, total spending is up 4.2%.
For all of 2016, new construction spending rose 4.5% to an estimated total of $1.1624 trillion, compared with the 2015 total of $1.1124 billion.
The consensus estimate by economists surveyed by Bloomberg News called for a rise of 0.2% in construction spending for December and a year-over-year spending increase of 4.1%.
For the month of December, private residential construction rose 0.4% month over month to $473.28 billion. Private nonresidential construction dipped 0.7% month over month, and total private construction spending on a seasonally adjusted annual basis rose 0.2% to $896.992 billion, compared with a revised November total of $894.84 billion.
In the private sector, single family residential construction was 0.3% higher than it was a year ago, and multifamily construction was up 11.7% from December 2015. Private, nonresidential construction was up 9.2% year over year.
In the public sector, seasonally adjusted total spending fell 1.7% compared with November and was 1.8% lower compared with December 2015. Spending on educational facilities decreased by 2.2% month over month and was up 1.5% from December 2015 spending. Public residential construction fell 3.8% month over month and dropped 3.4% compared with December 2015.
Private sector spending on new housing was up 3.7% year over year through December, and private sector spending on nonresidential construction was up 9.2% year over year. Total public and private construction spending was up 4.2% compared with December 2015.
Travel Cards Are Getting Too Good To Ignore (sponsored)
Credit card companies are pulling out all the stops, with the issuers are offering insane travel rewards and perks.
We’re talking huge sign-up bonuses, points on every purchase, and benefits like lounge access, travel credits, and free hotel nights. For travelers, these rewards can add up to thousands of dollars in flights, upgrades, and luxury experiences every year.
It’s like getting paid to travel — and it’s available to qualified borrowers who know where to look.
We’ve rounded up some of the best travel credit cards on the market. Click here to see the list. Don’t miss these offers — they won’t be this good forever.
Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.
Latest from 24/7
Our expert who first called NVIDIA in 2009 is predicting 2025 will see a historic AI breakthrough.
You can follow him investing $500,000 of his own money on our top AI stocks for free.