Construction spending inched up in December from a month earlier and increased solidly over the year but the major components showed divergent trends, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials cautioned that slowdown in spending in a number of key, private nonresidential categories could reflect broader financial uncertainty and undermine the sector's recovery.
“Home and apartment construction continued growing strongly while public construction, particularly for highways, has also advanced,” said Ken Simonson, the association's chief economist. “But spending on most private nonresidential categories has stalled or turned negative in the past several months. Contractors still say they are very busy now but uncertainty over the economy may mean new projects dry up.”
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