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September's Dodge Momentum Index (DMI) rose 3% to 182.5 from the revised August reading of 178.0. Over the month, the DMI’s commercial component fell 1%, while the institutional component rose 9%. The dip in the commercial segment was driven by weaker office planning. On the other hand, the... View full entry
Concerns over the possible Federal Government shutdown next month are causing headaches for contractors of much-needed infrastructure projects across the country who fear a chain reaction in the construction industry could leave lasting setbacks that would take years to overcome. A stop-work on... View full entry
The Associated Builders and Contractors’ Chief Economist Anirban Basu has struck an optimistic note about the near-term health of the construction industry. The assessment comes as ABC releases its latest Construction Backlog Indicator, which found that backlogs declined to 9.2 months in... View full entry
The latest data from the Dodge Construction Network has indicated a 6% total rise in construction starts to a seasonally-adjusted rate of $1.3 trillion for the month of August, following a 17% rise that was recorded in July thanks to gains in the multifamily and nonbuilding sectors. Nonresidential... View full entry
The American Institute of Architects' latest Architecture Billings Index for August has recorded a slight decrease to a score of 48.1 (any score above 50 indicates an increase), marking the eleventh month of consecutively flat figures for firms following a period of growth between 2021 and... View full entry
Construction input prices ticked up 1.5% in August, the first increase in six months, due to a surge in energy costs, according to a new Associated Builders and Contractors’ analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Producer Price Index data released Thursday. — Construction Dive
These readings come as a shock as the flattening of costs suggested that inflation was cooling. According to a separate analysis from the Associated General Contractors of America, a major increase in diesel fuel costs in August drove the overall increase in materials prices. The producer price... View full entry
The August Dodge Momentum Index (DMI) reading dipped 6.5% to 178 from the revised July reading of 190.3. Over the month, the commercial component of the DMI fell 1.6%, and the institutional component saw a double-digit decline of 14.8%. The notable contraction in the institutional sector was... View full entry
New rental apartment construction in the United States is expected to top a 50-year high in 2023. According to a report by RentCafe, nearly 461,000 units are expected to be delivered across the U.S. this year, meaning that over the past three years, 1.2 million units will have been built and... View full entry
Scientific American has published an opinion piece by the publication’s editors, highlighting the role of building codes in saving “money and lives.” Citing the growing number of “multibillion-dollar disasters” striking the United States, the opinion piece makes the argument that... View full entry
National nonresidential construction spending saw a modest rise of 0.1% in July, according to a new analysis by the Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) of U.S. Census Bureau data. When adjusted for seasonality on an annualized basis, nonresidential spending stood at $1.08 trillion, marking a... View full entry
The nationwide demand for labor is dulling, but construction still faces a shortage of workers. Construction counted 363,000 job openings at the end of July, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, a decrease of 23,000 jobs from June. — Construction Dive
As noted by the chief economist for Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC), Anirban Basu, job openings, across all industries, are at the lowest level since March 2021, and the rate at which workers are quitting their jobs has returned to the pre-pandemic norm. The demand for construction... View full entry
As the industry struggles to staff jobsites, contractors have ramped up the pursuit of the next generation of builders with vigor.
[...] experienced construction professionals approaching the end of their time in construction can pass down the vital building knowledge they have to Gen Z workers entering the industry from different academic backgrounds.
— Construction Dive
As reported by Construction Dive, a new industry report has revealed that construction employers have increased outreach for young talent by 46% over the past year. In addition, applications to architecture, drafting, and construction management roles rose by more than 40% on the platform... View full entry
The American Institute of Architects has just released its Architecture Billings Index for the month of July, highlighting further stability in the demand for design services for the third month in a row. The index score was recorded at 50.0, indicating a flat figure (anything above 50.0 is... View full entry
Construction starts rose a total of 17% for July to a seasonally-adjusted rate of $1.2 trillion, according to the just-released report from Dodge Construction Network. The latest data also indicated a 7% year-to-date drop in total construction starts when compared to the July 2022 totals... View full entry
The latest Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Producer Price Index data indicates that increasingly stable construction materials prices and recent supply chain improvements over the past few months may signal "positive... View full entry