Econoday Report: Construction Spending 2, 2008

2008 U.S. Economic Events & Analysis

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Construction Spending

Definition
The dollar value of new construction activity on residential, non-residential, and public projects. Data are available in nominal and real (inflation-adjusted) dollars. Why Investors Care

Released on 1/2/08 For Nov 2007

Construction Spending - M/M change
Actual	0.1%
Consensus	-0.3%
Consensus Range	-0.8% to 0.3%
Previous	-0.8 %

Highlights
Construction spending in November unexpectedly rebounded slightly, led by nonresidential and public construction. Construction outlays rebounded 0.1 percent in November, following a 0.4 percent fall in October. The rise in November was above the market forecast for a 0.3 percent drop.

November's gain in construction spending was led by a 2.5 percent jump in public outlays. Private nonresidential posted a 1.7 percent boost while private residential fell 2.5 percent. Within nonresidential, the manufacturing and the power components were particularly strong. Within residential, single-family outlays fell 5.0 percent while multifamily rose 0.6 percent.

On a year-on-year basis, overall construction outlays were down 0.1 percent in November, unchanged from October's figure.

While the markets should like the better-than-expected numbers, attention will be on the ISM manufacturing number which was in negative territory.

Market Consensus Before Announcement
Construction spending dropped 0.8 percent in October, following a 0.2 percent rebound in September. Construction outlays have been volatile over the last few months but appear to indicate a basically flat trend despite the sharp weakness in housing. Until recently, nonresidential and public sector gains in construction outlays have been offsetting declines in the residential component. On a year-on-year basis, overall construction outlays were down 0.6 percent in October.

Construction spending Consensus Forecast for November 07: -0.3 percent
Range: -0.8 to +0.3 percent

Trends

Over the last year, a decline in residential outlays has pulled down year-on-year growth for overall construction outlays. Nonresidential and public outlays are positive with nonresidential actually strong.

Data Source: Haver Analytics | Consensus Data Soruce: Market News International and Thomson Financial

2007 Release Schedule

Released On: 1/3 1/31 3/1 3/30 4/30 5/31 6/29 7/31 9/4 9/28 10/31 11/30

Released For: Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct