Construction Spending Dips 0.1% In May, 1st Decline In 8 Months

Construction spending in May slipped 0.1% from a month earlier, the first decline since September 2021.

According to data released Friday by the Commerce Department, construction spending was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1.78 trillion, down from the revised April estimate of $1.783 trillion. The May estimate is still 9.7% above the estimate of $1.623 trillion for May 2021.

Overall residential construction, however, ticked up 0.2% in May from April, and was 18.7% above the estimate for May 2021.

Private construction spending remained unchanged in May after increasing 1.1% in April, but was 19% higher than in May 2021. Residential construction spending rose 0.2%, but spending on both single-family and multi-family construction was unchanged. 

Private spending on constructing single-family homes in May, however, was 15.1% higher than a year earlier, while private spending on construction of multi-family homes fell 3.6% from a year earlier.

Public investment in residential construction fell 0.7% in May from April, and was down 2.7% from a year earlier.

The National Association of Home Builders reports that prices for construction materials have increased 20% in the past year, during a period of intense demand and insufficient supply.