Long Island Construction Law does not own this content. This content was created by the Associated Press and was published to the Long Island Business News on June 1, 2021.
U.S. construction spending rose a modest 0.2% in April as strength in housing offset further weakness in nonresidential construction. The April increase followed a much stronger 1% gain in March which was revised up from an initial estimate of a slight 0.2% advance. The April increase pushed construction to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1.52 trillion in April, 9.8% higher than a year ago, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday.
Through the first four months of this year, construction activity is 5.8% higher than the same period in 2020.
Home building, a standout performer over the past year, rose 1% in April and is now 29.7% higher than a year ago, underscoring how strong home construction has been in the past year. Construction of single-family homes was up 1.3% in Aril and apartment construction rose 1.9%.
Nonresidential construction fell 0.5% in April and is 4.8% below the level of a year ago. With the lockdowns over the past year, developers have struggled with cancellations of commercial projects as businesses had more employees work from home. That is a trend many see continuing, reducing the need for more office space.
Spending on government building projects fell 0.6% in April and is down 2.2% from a year ago, reflecting the construction cutbacks many states and localities have done as tax revenue fell during the pandemic-induced recession. In April, highway construction was up 0.6% from March but down 2.7% from a year ago.
“Overall, nonresidential and public construction spending remain depressed, but building activity activity in the residential sector should remain well-supported by low inventories and still-strong demand,” said Rubeela Farooqi, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics.
John Caravella Esq., is a construction attorney and formerly practicing project architect at The Law Office of John Caravella, P.C., representing architects, engineers, contractors, subcontractors, and owners in all phases of contract preparation, litigation, and arbitration across New York and Florida. He also serves as an arbitrator to the American Arbitration Association Construction Industry Panel. Mr. Caravella can be reached by email: John@LIConstructionLaw.com or (631) 608-1346.
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Long Island Construction Law does not own this content. This content was created by the Associated Press and was published to the Long Island Business News on June 1, 2021.
