U.S. Construction Spending Climbs More Than Expected In October

(RTTNews) - Construction spending in the U.S. increased more than expected in the month of October, according to a report released by the Commerce Department on Monday.

The Commerce Department said construction spending climbed by 0.4 percent to an annual rate of $2.174 trillion in October after inching up by 0.1 percent to a rate of $2.165 trillion in September. Economists had expected construction spending to rise by 0.2 percent.

The bigger than expected increase by total construction spending came as spending on private construction grew by 0.7 percent to an annual rate of $1.676 trillion.

Spending on residential construction jumped by 1.5 percent to a rate of $934.0 billion, more than offsetting a 0.3 percent dip in spending on non-residential construction to a rate of $742.3 billion.

Meanwhile, the report said spending on public construction fell by 0.5 percent to an annual rate of $497.6 billion amid decreases in spending on both educational and highway construction.