US construction spending falls 0.1% in January, bucking estimates

By Ovunc Kutlu

ISTANBUL (AA) — US construction spending fell 0.1% to $1,825.7 billion in January, going against market estimates for a gain, according to data released Wednesday by the Commerce Department.

Construction spending, one of the major indicators of well-being in the construction sector, was expected to rise by a monthly 0.2%.

The figure for December 2022 was revised to $1,827.5 billion — a 0.7% decrease from the previous month, the figures showed.

Annually, January's reading was 5.7% above the figure from the same month last year, when it stood at $1,726.6 billion, the Commerce Department said.

While spending on private construction in January remained almost unchanged from the previous month, public construction spending fell 0.6% month-on-month, according to the agency.