Associated Builders and Contractors reports that its Construction Backlog Indicator fell 0.1 months in June and stands at 8.9 months, according to an ABC member survey conducted June 21-July 5. The reading is up 0.4 months from June 2021. The index readings for sales, profit margins and staffing levels declined in June. The indices for sales and staffing remain above the threshold of 50, indicating expectations of growth over the next six months, while the reading for profit margins fell below the threshold of 50 for the first time since October 2021.

The construction industry added 13,000 jobs on net in June, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors’ analysis of data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. On a year-over-year basis, industry employment has risen by 292,000 jobs, an increase of 4.0%. Nonresidential construction employment increased by 16,500 positions on net, with all three subsectors showing positive growth. Nonresidential specialty trade added 11,400 net new jobs, while heavy and civil engineering added 4,500. Nonresidential building also added 600 new positions. The construction industry unemployment rate dropped slightly to 3.7% in June. Unemployment across all industries remained unchanged for the … Read more

The construction industry registered 434,000 job openings in May, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors’ analysis of data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey. The JOLTS survey defines a job opening as any unfilled position for which an employer is actively recruiting. Industry job openings decreased by 6,000 in May but are up 126,000 from the same month last year. Construction workers again quit their jobs at a faster rate than they were laid off or discharged in May. The quits rate of 2.9% was meaningfully above the layoff/discharge rate of 1.4%. … Read more

National nonresidential construction spending was down by 0.6% in May, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors’ analysis of data published by the U.S. Census Bureau. On a seasonally adjusted annualized basis, nonresidential spending totaled $832.5 billion for the month. Spending was down on a monthly basis in 10 of the 16 nonresidential subcategories. Private nonresidential spending was down 0.4%, while public nonresidential construction spending was down 0.8% in May. Nonresidential construction spending is up 1% over the past year, though spending is down in 10 of 16 categories over that span. The best performer is manufacturing, a segment in … Read more

Construction input prices rose 2.3% in May compared to the previous month, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors’ analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Producer Price Index data. Nonresidential construction input prices also increased 2.3% for the month. Construction input prices are up 21.4% from a year ago, while nonresidential construction input prices are 21.9% higher. Input prices rose in 10 of 11 subcategories in May. The largest price increases were in natural gas (+39.7%) and unprocessed energy materials (+16.3%).