Spending on construction in the U.S. unexpectedly rose in April as the housing slump eased and more commercial projects got under way.
The 0.8 percent gain was the biggest since August and followed a revised 0.4 percent increase the prior month, the Commerce Department said today in Washington. Residential construction climbed 0.6 percent and work on power plants and factories propelled commercial construction up.
Year over Year
Month over Month
Bloomberg continues:
Federal and local government spending will ramp up as funding from the $787 billion fiscal stimulus package filters through to worksites. Borrowing rates near historic lows and improving business and consumer confidence may help stem the worst housing slump since the Great Depression
Public spending has shown relative strength in year over year figures, but...
Year over Year Public Spending
The only concern I would have is whether we have enough public projects lined up. While month over month data points do not necessarily mean a trend (and likely do not), April's construction spending jump was in spite of (not due to) a 0.6% drop in public construction spending.
Month over Month Public Spending
Source: Census
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