ACEC Market Insights: What’s Driving the Industry

Recently, the US Census released the results of its monthly Value of Construction Put in Place Survey.

• By the numbers: The survey provides estimates of the total dollar value of construction work done in the U.S. This data includes design and construction spending for public and private projects.

EXPLORE THE DATA WITH OUR NEW INTERACTIVE DASHBOARD

The seasonally adjusted annual rate of $2.1 trillion for April 2024 represents a monthly decline of -0.1%.

• This is the second consecutive month in a row with a decline in in the growth rate.

• The last time there were two consecutive months of decline was October, 2022.

The latest release shows a plateauing in total construction growth, inline with overall economic conditions softening. US GDP for the 1st quarter of 2024 was revised downward to 1.3% from an initial reading of 1.6%.

The nonresidential sector saw a month over month decline of -0.28% while the residential sector spending grew slightly at 0.9%. Both residential and nonresidential spending show MoM volatility since the beginning of 2024.

With respect to year over year growth in individual markets, manfucturing continues to be a top area for design & construction spending with total year to date (YTD) spending of $71.3b.  Highway and streets and the educational sector are also top markets with double digital YTD growth and significant total spending values.

For the sectors with the lowest levels of growth, several categories including lodging, commercial, and residential real estate are all sensitive to interest rate levels and reflect the impact borrowing costs have had on land development for these sectors.