Ken Simonson's blog

Prices remain tame; federal funding rises a bit; Beige Book shows optimism

Editor’s note:  Construction Citizen is proud to partner with AGC America to bring you AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson's Data DIGest. Check back each week to get Ken's expert analysis of what's happening in our industry.

Click to view the December Producer Price Indexes (PPI) table.

The producer price index (PPI) for finished goods inched up 0.1%, not seasonally adjusted (0.4%, seasonally adjusted), in December and 1.2% over 12 months, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Wednesday. The PPI for inputs to construction – an average of the cost of all materials used in construction plus items consumed by contractors, such as diesel fuel – also rose 0.1% for the month and climbed 1.3% year-over-year. That was the smallest yearly increase since 2009, slightly less than the 1.4% rise in 2012.   [node:read-more:link]

Construction employment slips in December; Dodge, Reis reports point to growth ahead

Editor’s note:  Construction Citizen is proud to partner with AGC America to bring you AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson's Data DIGest. Check back each week to get Ken's expert analysis of what's happening in our industry.

Nonfarm payroll employment increased by 74,000, seasonally adjusted, in December and 2,293,000 (1.7%) over 12 months, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported on Friday. Construction employment fell for the first time since May, by 16,000, to 5,833,000, an increase of 122,000 (2.1%) over the past year. Total hours worked (aggregate weekly hours) in construction fell for the month and increased only 0.8% from December 2012, implying that contractors are no longer extending hours per worker, as they had earlier in the year. Residential construction employment (residential building and specialty trade contractors) climbed by 6,200 for the month and 99,800 (4.8%) for the year. Nonresidential employment (building, specialty trades, and heavy and civil engineering construction) decreased by 22,900 from November and rose by 22,100 (0.6%), respectively.   [node:read-more:link]

Construction spending rises in November; most metros add jobs

Editor’s note:  Construction Citizen is proud to partner with AGC America to bring you AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson's Data DIGest. Check back each week to get Ken's expert analysis of what's happening in our industry.

Construction spending in November totaled $934 billion at a seasonally adjusted annual rate, up 1.0% from the October total (which was revised up by $16 billion) and up 5.9% from November 2012, the Census Bureau reported on Thursday. The number was the highest since March 2009. Private nonresidential spending jumped 2.7% from October but only 1.0% from November 2012. Private residential spending rose 1.9% for the month and 17% year-over-year. Public construction spending slumped 1.8% from October and 0.2% compared with November 2012. Of the three residential components, new single-family construction rose 1.8% for the month and 18% year-over-year. New multifamily construction soared 0.9% and 36%, respectively.   [node:read-more:link]

Most states add jobs in November; BLS projects steep gains but no new peak by 2022

Editor’s note:  Construction Citizen is proud to partner with AGC America to bring you AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson's Data DIGest. Check back each week to get Ken's expert analysis of what's happening in our industry.

In November, seasonally adjusted nonfarm payroll employment increased from a year earlier in 49 states and the District of Columbia and decreased in Alaska, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported Friday. Seasonally adjusted construction employment climbed in 39 states (the same year-over-year total as in October), declined in 10 states and D.C., and held steady in Delaware, an AGC analysis showed. Mississippi again had the steepest year-over-year percentage increase (17%, 8,000 jobs), followed by Connecticut (11%, 5,600 jobs), Missouri (9.8%, 10,100 jobs) and Georgia (9.5%, 13,200 jobs). California added the most construction jobs for the year (31,500, 5.2%), followed by Florida (24,300, 7.0%), Texas (13,300, 2.2%), Georgia and Missouri.   [node:read-more:link]

Materials costs fall; job openings rise but hiring dips; age cohort shifts pose challenges

Editor’s note:  Construction Citizen is proud to partner with AGC America to bring you AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson's Data DIGest. Check back each week to get Ken's expert analysis of what's happening in our industry.

View the November PPI table here.

The producer price index (PPI) for finished goods fell 0.5%, not seasonally adjusted (-0.1%, seasonally adjusted), in November and edged up just 0.7% over 12 months, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported on Friday. The PPI for inputs to construction – a weighted average of the cost of all materials used in construction plus items consumed by contractors such as diesel fuel—also dropped 0.5% for the month and rose 1.1% year-over-year. The PPIs for inputs to different types of construction all declined for the month and increased only slightly year-over-year:   [node:read-more:link]

Construction employment rises again; Fed, IHS surveys find worker-shortage worries

Editor’s note:  Construction Citizen is proud to partner with AGC America to bring you AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson's Data DIGest. Check back each week to get Ken's expert analysis of what's happening in our industry.

Nonfarm payroll employment increased by 203,000, seasonally adjusted, in November and 2,293,000 (1.7%) over 12 months, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported on Friday. Construction employment rose for the sixth straight month, to a 51-month high of 5,851,000, up 17,000 from October and up 178,000 (3.1%) over the past year. Total hours worked (aggregate weekly hours) in construction since November 2012 increased by slightly more (3.4% ), implying that contractors are no longer extending hours per worker as much as they had earlier in the year.   [node:read-more:link]

Construction spending, number of metros with job gains rise in October
 
Editor’s note:  Construction Citizen is proud to partner with AGC America to bring you AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson's Data DIGest. Check back each week to get Ken's expert analysis of what's happening in our industry.

View October metro employment figures by state and rank here.

Construction spending in October totaled $909 billion at a seasonally adjusted annual rate, up 0.8% from the September total and up 5.3% from October 2012, the Census Bureau reported on Tuesday. The number was the highest since May 2009, but only because initially higher estimates for August and July were revised down by $11 billion and $7 billion, respectively. The gain since September was attributable to a 3.9% rise in public construction spending, which also climbed 2.3% compared with October 2012. Nevertheless, the year-to-date total for public construction was 2.8% below the total for the first 10 months of 2012 combined. Private residential spending slipped 0.6% for the month, but rose 18% year-over-year and 17% year-to-date. Private nonresidential spending decreased 0.5% from September and 3.4% from October 2012, but was up 0.8% year-to-date.   [node:read-more:link]

Job gains spread to 39 states; material, labor costs remain mild; starts rise, MHC says

Editor’s note:  Construction Citizen is proud to partner with AGC America to bring you AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson's Data DIGest. Check back each week to get Ken's expert analysis of what's happening in our industry.

In October, seasonally adjusted nonfarm payroll employment increased from a year earlier in 49 states and decreased in Alaska and the District of Columbia, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported Friday. Seasonally adjusted construction employment climbed in 39 states—the largest total in 18 months—and declined in 11 states and D.C., an AGC analysis showed.   [node:read-more:link]

Budget cuts hit federal, supplier demand for space; suburban, medical offices pick up

Editor’s note:  Construction Citizen is proud to partner with AGC America to bring you AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson's Data DIGest. Check back each week to get Ken's expert analysis of what's happening in our industry.

Federal budget cuts are affecting demand for space by both the government and its suppliers. On Thursday, Lockheed Martin announced it “plans to close its operations in Newtown, Pa.; Akron, Ohio; Goodyear, Ariz.; and Horizon City, Texas; and four buildings on its Sunnyvale, Calif., campus….Since 2008, Lockheed Martin has…removed 1.5 million square feet of facility space….The facility closures announced today will further reduce the Corporation’s operational footprint by nearly 2.5 million square feet of facility space.” Also on Thursday, the Washington Business Journal reported, “In the past year, the federal government has shed roughly 831,800 square feet of space in an effort to downsize and move into more efficient buildings, according to Jones Lang LaSalle’s annual Federal Perspective report.”   [node:read-more:link]

Construction hits 50-month high in employment, adds to private and public GDP gains

Editor’s note:  Construction Citizen is proud to partner with AGC America to bring you AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson's Data DIGest. Check back each week to get Ken's expert analysis of what's happening in our industry.

Nonfarm payroll employment increased by 204,000, seasonally adjusted, in October and 2,329,000 (1.7%) over 12 months as the estimates for August and September were revised substantially up, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported on Friday. Construction employment rose for the fifth straight month, to a 50-month high of 5,834,000, up 11,000 from September and up 185,000 (3.3%) over the past year. Total hours worked (aggregate weekly hours) in construction increased by 3.8% since October 2012, implying that contractors are extending working hours slightly as well as hiring new workers.   [node:read-more:link]