Construction Material Prices Increase Steadily in June, Says ABC

  • Posted on

WASHINGTON, D.C. – According to a recent Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data, construction material prices rose another .8 percent in June and are 9.6 percent higher than they were at the same time one year ago. June represents the latest month associated with rapidly rising construction input prices. Nonresidential construction materials prices effectively mirrored overall construction prices by rising .9 percent on a month-over-month basis and 9.8 percent on a year-over-year basis. “In general, this emerging state of affairs is unfavorable,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “Rapidly rising materials prices interfere with … Read more

Filed under: Economic NewsTagged with: , ,

Workforce Challenges Continue to Impact Construction Industry as 9 of 10 U.S. Contractors Report Skilled Labor Shortage

  • Posted on

Findings from the recently released Q2 2018 USG Corporation + U.S. Chamber of Commerce Commercial Construction Index show four straight quarters with more than 90 percent of contractors concerned over labor shortages. Concerns increased quarter-over-quarter, with 47 percent of respondents expecting problems finding skilled workers to worsen in the next six months. “Contractors’ pipelines for new business are consistently healthy, however, that optimism is challenged by a growing shortage of workers – a trend that’s persisted for more than a year,” said Jennifer Scanlon, president and CEO of USG Corporation. “In order to sustain the strong pipeline of work, it’s important … Read more

Filed under: Economic News, eNewsTagged with: , , ,

Construction Spending Reaches Record High

  • Posted on

Construction spending reached a record level of $1.309 trillion in May as monthly increases in residential and public investment outweighed a decline in private nonresidential outlays, according to an analysis of new government data by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials warned, however, that continued labor shortages and rising materials costs threaten future growth in demand. “Public construction spending has increased strongly for the past nine months and is now at the highest level since 2010, led by a rebound in infrastructure investment,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “Single-family home building is continuing to expand, while … Read more

Filed under: Economic NewsTagged with: , ,

May Construction Unemployment Rates Down Year Over Year in 45 States, Says ABC

  • Posted on

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Estimated May construction unemployment rates fell in 45 states on a year-over-year basis, rose in four states and were unchanged in one state (Alabama), according to an analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data released by Associated Builders and Contractors. The May 2018 not seasonally adjusted  national construction unemployment rate fell 0.9 percent from May 2017 to 4.4 percent, the lowest May rate on record. At the same time, the construction industry employed 291,000 more workers nationally than in May 2017. “May proved to be an excellent month for construction employment, despite the ongoing shortage of … Read more

Filed under: Economic NewsTagged with: ,

ABC’s Construction Confidence Index Surges in Q1

  • Posted on

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Despite ongoing concerns regarding labor force availability and rising interest rates, and emerging concerns regarding tariffs and construction materials prices, construction contractors emerged from the first quarter of 2018 with tremendous confidence, according to the Associated Builders and Contractors Construction Confidence Index. Each of the three indices—sales, profit margins and staffing levels—increased during the first quarter and remain well above the threshold reading of 50. The CCI for sales expectations increased from 67.1 to 72.2 during the first quarter of 2018 The CCI for profit margin expectations increased from 60.7 to 63.4 The CCI for staffing levels … Read more

Filed under: Economic NewsTagged with: ,