Construction spending in the United States declined by 0.3% in January, reaching an annual rate of $2.190 trillion, compared to a 0.8% increase in December to $2.198 trillion, according to data from the U.S. Department of Commerce. Analysts had expected a 0.1% increase.
This decline led to a 0.6% drop in private construction spending, bringing it to an annual rate of $1.661 trillion. Residential construction spending also fell by 0.8% to $993 billion, while non-residential construction decreased by 0.4% to $728.2 billion.
On the other hand, public construction spending rose by 0.6% to reach an annual rate of $529.2 billion. This included a 3.3% increase in highway spending to $148.5 billion, while spending on educational buildings declined by 0.2% to $114.1 billion annually.
