Construction spending during March 2019 was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1,282.2 billion, 0.9 percent below the revised February estimate of $1,293.3 billion. The March figure is 0.8 percent below the March 2018 estimate of $1,293.1 billion. The one bright spot was nonresidential spending, which saw a very slight increase over February’s numbers.  During the first three months of this year, construction spending amounted to $277.7 billion, actually 0.2 percent below the $278.3 billion for the same period in 2018. 

PRIVATE CONSTRUCTION:
Private Construction Spending on private construction was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $961.5 billion, 0.7 percent below the revised February estimate of $968.6 billion. Residential construction was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $500.9 billion in March, 1.8 percent below the revised February estimate of $510.1 billion. Nonresidential construction was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $460.6 billion in March, 0.5 percent above the revised February estimate of $458.5 billion.

PUBLIC CONSTRUCTION:
Public Construction In March, the estimated seasonally adjusted annual rate of public construction spending was $320.7 billion, 1.3 percent below the revised February estimate of $324.7 billion. Educational construction was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $76.6 billion, 1.5 percent below the revised February estimate of $77.8 billion. Highway construction was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $104.5 billion, 1.9 percent below the revised February estimate of $106.5 billion.

BY THE NUMBERS: