October 11, 2010—The Associated General Contractors (AGC) of America recently released analyses of three sets of federal figures showing slightly positive trends for the U.S. construction industry.
Total construction spending edged up 0.4 percent between July and August to $812 billion, driven by increases in public construction activity including stimulus and base realignment projects, according to an analysis of new Census Bureau data by the AGC. Association officials cautioned, however, that private residential and nonresidential spending both continued to shrink as private-sector demand for construction remains extremely weak.
Construction employment expanded in 56 out of 337 metropolitan areas between August 2009 and August 2010 according to analysis of federal employment data released by AGC. More cities added construction jobs during the past year than at any point since September 2008, indicating that the worst of the industry’s job losses may be over, although the industry has a long way to go before employment returns to pre-recession levels, association officials noted. Construction employment figures by metro area or by rank are available on the AGC Web site.
Construction jobs were added in 25 states in August, while the number of states with year-over-year job gains rose to 10 from just six in July, AGC reported in an analysis of state employment data from the Labor Department. The number of states that increased construction employment over 12 months was the largest since October 2008. New Hampshire had the largest year-over-year increase at 9.6 percent (2,100 jobs), while Nevada experienced the largest percentage job decrease at 19.6 percent (14,700 jobs). Illinois gained the most jobs in August with 14,200 new jobs (7.7 percent increase), while Minnesota lost the most at 2,500 (3.0 percent). Construction employment figures by state or by rank are available on the AGC Web site.
