The Department of Commerce recently announced that construction spending during Dec. 2012 was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $885.0 billion, 0.9% above the revised November estimate of $876.9 billion. The December figure is 7.8% above the Dec. 2011 estimate of $820.6 billion. The value of construction in 2012 was $850.2 billion, 9.2% above the $778.2 billion spent in 2011.
Private construction. Spending on private construction was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $614.9 billion, 2% above the revised November estimate of $602.9 billion. Residential construction was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $308.2 billion in December, 2.2% above the revised November estimate of $301.7 billion. Nonresidential construction was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $306.7 billion in December, 1.8 % above the revised November estimate of $301.2 billion.
The value of private construction in 2012 was $574.6 billion, 16.1% above the $49 billion spent in 2011. Residential construction in 2012 was $276.8 billion, 16.8% above the 2011 figure of $237 billion and nonresidential construction was $297.7 billion, 15.4% above the $258 billion in 2011.
Public construction. In December, the estimated seasonally adjusted annual rate of public construction spending was $270.1 billion, 1.4% below the revised November estimate. Educational construction was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $65.5 billion, 0.7% below the revised November estimate of $66 billion. Highway construction was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $78.5 billion, 0.7% above the revised November estimate. The value of public construction in 2012 was $275.6 billion, 2.7% below 2011 expenditures. Educational construction in 2012 was $67.7 billion, 3.5% below the 2011 figure of $70.1 billion.
| Type of Construction | Dec. 2012(1) | Nov. 2012(2) | Mo. % change | Dec. 2011 | YTY % change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total Construction | 885.0 | 876.9 | 0.9 | 820.6 | 7.8 |
| Total Private Construction(1) | 614.9 | 602.9 | 2 | 534.6 | 15 |
| Residential (inc. Improvements)2 | 308.2 | 301.7 | 2.2 | 249.4 | 23.6 |
| New single family | 144.8 | 143.7 | 0.8 | 112.9 | 28.3 |
| New multi-family | 25.8 | 24.3 | 6.2 | 16.4 | 57.4 |
| Lodging | 11.2 | 11.0 | 2.1 | 9.2 | 21.2 |
| Office | 28.8 | 28.2 | 2 | 23.0 | 25.2 |
| Commercial (inc. Farm) | 44.6 | 44.7 | -0.2 | 41.9 | 6.6 |
| Health Care | 29.0 | 28.8 | 0.7 | 29.9 | -3.1 |
| Educational | 18.1 | 17.1 | 6.4 | 15.6 | 16.6 |
| Religious | 3.7 | 3.6 | 0.7 | 4.1 | -10.2 |
| Amusement and Recreation | 6.8 | 7.0 | -3.4 | 7.3 | -7.8 |
| Transportation | 12.3 | 12.8 | -3.7 | 11.2 | 10.4 |
| Communication | 16.8 | 17.0 | -0.8 | 17.6 | -4.5 |
| Power (inc. Gas and Oil) | 83.9 | 81.0 | 3.7 | 73.8 | 13.7 |
| Electric | 70.5 | 67.0 | 5.2 | 62.4 | 12.9 |
| Manufacturing | 49.9 | 48.7 | 2.5 | 50.0 | -0.2 |
| Total Public Construction(1) | 270.1 | 274.1 | -1.4 | 286.1 | -5.6 |
| Residential | 6.4 | 6.6 | -2.6 | 7.8 | -17.3 |
| Office | 9.5 | 9.4 | 1.8 | 12.1 | -21.4 |
| Commercial | 2.7 | 3.2 | -16.5 | 3.8 | -29.9 |
| Health care | 11.4 | 11.0 | 3.9 | 11.0 | 4.1 |
| Educational | 65.5 | 66.0 | -0.7 | 70.0 | -6.4 |
| Public safety | 9.2 | 9.3 | -0.4 | 10.5 | -12.2 |
| Amusement and recreation | 9.2 | 8.8 | 4.4 | 9.3 | -1.6 |
| Transportation | 28.2 | 28.5 | -1 | 24.4 | 15.6 |
| Power | 9.9 | 11.6 | -14.9 | 10.5 | -6.3 |
| Highway and street | 78.5 | 78.0 | 0.7 | 82.3 | -4.6 |
| Sewage and waste disposal | 20.0 | 21.9 | -8.9 | 23.2 | -13.8 |
| Water supply | 12.4 | 12.8 | -3.5 | 12.7 | -2.9 |
| Conservation and development | 5.7 | 5.5 | 3.7 | 6.3 | -8.8 |
| NOTES: All data in billions of Dollars; Preliminary: 1; Revised: 2; SOURCE: U.S. Department of Commerce; |
