WASHINGTON–Construction spending was essentially flat in May when compared to April, according to data released by the U.S. Census Bureau.
The Census Bureau reported there were seasonally adjusted annualized expenditures of $1.23 trillion during the month on all types of construction.
In addition, the revised estimate for April was $1.23 trillion as well, but that resulted from a revision of the original sharp decline in spending reported for March, 1.4%, to -0.7%, according to the Bureau. On a year-over-year basis total spending was up 4.5%, it reported.
The Census Bureau said that on a non-seasonally adjusted basis, total spending in May was $103.16 billion compared to $99.506 in April. For the first five months of 2017, it estimates spending at $469.2 billion, up 6.1% from expenditures at the same point in 2016.
The Census Bureau further reported:
- Private spending overall was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $943.2 billion, a -0.6 % change from April's estimate of $949.3 billion, but up 6.2% from one year earlier.
- Private spending on residential construction fared little better than the overall numbers in May. On a seasonally adjusted basis, expenditures were $509.62 billion, a decrease of 0.6% month-over-month from $512.34 billion, it said. Still, spending was significantly higher than May of 2016, with an increase of 11.2%.