Ken Simonson's blog

Construction employment and spending grow in past year but slip in latest month

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 here to view June metro employment tables.

Nonfarm payroll employment increased by 162,000, seasonally adjusted, in July and 2,276,000 (1.7%) over 12 months, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported on Friday. [node:read-more:link]

Starts dip, MHC says; AIA, NABE find positive outlook; hotel construction is reviving

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.

The value of new construction starts in June edged down 1% from May at a seasonally adjusted annual rate, McGraw Hill Construction (MHC) reported on Monday. “Nonresidential building lost momentum in June after strengthening during the previous two months, and housing experienced a pause from its recent upward trend. Meanwhile, nonbuilding construction advanced in June, lifted by the start of several very large bridge projects. For the first six months of 2013, total construction starts on an unadjusted basis were… down 2% from the same period a year ago. The 2013 year-to-date decline for total construction was due primarily to a sharp reduction for electric utilities compared to a robust first half of 2012. If electric utilities are excluded, total construction starts for the first six months of 2013 would be up 9% from last year, led by substantial growth [28%] for housing,” which offset year-to-date declines of 9% for nonresidential building and 24% for nonbuilding construction. [node:read-more:link]

Most states add jobs in past year; nonres, multifamily starts tumble, say Reed, Census

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 state employment data by rank, by state and by change from peak.  In June, seasonally adjusted nonfarm payroll employment increased from a year earlier in 37 states, decreased in 12 states and the District of Columbia and was unchanged in Arkansas, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported on Thursday. Seasonally adjusted construction employment climbed in 36 states and fell in 14 states and D.C., an AGC analysis showed. The largest one-year percentage gains in construction jobs occurred in Wyoming (10.4%, 2,200 jobs), Louisiana (9.7%, 12,200) and Arizona (9.7%, 11,100). California added the most new construction jobs over the past 12 months (32,200, 5.5%), followed by Texas (31,400, 5.4%), Florida (12,200, 3.6%) and Louisiana.   [node:read-more:link]

Prices for materials, construction flatten or dip in June; freight costs may rise soon

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 here to view June PPI table.

The producer price index (PPI) for finished goods climbed 0.3%, not seasonally adjusted (0.8%, seasonally adjusted), in June and 2.5% over 12 months, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported on Friday. [node:read-more:link]

Construction job growth, unemployment improve; several indicators augur more 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 195,000, seasonally adjusted, in June and 2,293,000 (1.7%) over 12 months, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported on Friday. Construction employment rose by 13,000 for the month and totaled 5,812,000, seasonally adjusted, the highest level since August 2009 and a gain of 190,000 (3.4%) over the past year. Total hours worked in construction (aggregate weekly hours) increased by 4.7% since June 2012, implying that contractors are lengthening working hours slightly, in addition to hiring new workers. Residential construction employment (residential building and specialty trade contractors) climbed by [node:read-more:link]

Residential, public construction expand in May but nonres stalls; more 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 May totaled $875 billion at a seasonally adjusted annual rate, up 0.5% from April and 5.4% from May 2012, the Census Bureau reported on Monday. Private residential spending jumped 1.2% for the month and 23% year-over-year. Private nonresidential spending slumped 1.4% and 0.9%, respectively. Public construction spending climbed 1.8% in May but fell 4.7% over 12 months. Of the three residential components, new single-family construction rose 0.4% and 33%, respectively; new multifamily spending, 2.5% and 52% [node:read-more:link]

Construction jobs rise in more states in May; year-to-date starts slip, MHC and Reed say

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 May, seasonally adjusted nonfarm payroll employment increased from a year earlier in 48 states and the District of Columbia and decreased in Alaska and Wyoming, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported today. Seasonally adjusted construction employment climbed in 32 states, fell in 18 states and the District of Columbia, and was flat in Idaho, an AGC analysis showed. Louisiana and North Dakota surpassed previous construction employment peaks, set in November 2008 and September 2012, respectively. The largest one-year percentage gains in construction jobs occurred in Arizona (10.4%, 11,900 jobs), Louisiana (9.4%, 11,800), Hawaii (9.3%, 2,700) and Connecticut (9.2%, 4,700). Texas added the most new construction jobs over the past 12 months (39,200, 6.7%), followed by California (38,500, 6.6%), Arizona and Louisiana. Montana [node:read-more:link]

Construction PPIs are calm in May; building suppliers signal rises but metal prices slip

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 here to view the May PPI tables.

The producer price index (PPI) for finished goods climbed 0.5%, not seasonally adjusted (and seasonally adjusted), in May and 1.7% over 12 months, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported today. 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—was flat for the month and rose just 0.8% year-over-year. [node:read-more:link]

Job gains resume in May; spending grows in April; Beige Book notes expansion

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 175,000, seasonally adjusted, in May and 2,115,000 (1.6%) over 12 months, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Construction employment rose by 7,000 for the month and totaled 5,804,000, seasonally adjusted, the highest mark since August 2009 and a gain of 189,000 (3.4%) over the past year. Total hours worked in construction increased by 5.2% over 12 months, implying that contractors are lengthening working hours and also hiring new workers. Residential construction employment (residential building and specialty trade contractors) rose by 5,500, seasonally adjusted, for the month and 94,400 (4.6%) for the year. Nonresidential employment (building, specialty trades, and heavy and civil engineering construction) rose by 1,700 and 95,500 (2.7%), respectively. Architectural and engineering services employment, a harbinger of future demand for construction, rose 2.1% over the year. The unemployment rate for jobseekers who last worked in construction tumbled to the lowest May level in five years--10.8%, down from 14.2% in May 2012 and a May high of 20.1% in 2010. The number of unemployed former construction workers shrank by 259,000 over the year, implying that workers are leaving the industry as well as being rehired. (Industry unemployment data are not seasonally adjusted and should only be compared year-over-year, not across months.) [node:read-more:link]

Half of metros gain construction jobs in past year; Reed says starts sag from a year ago

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 here to view April metro employment tables.

Nonfarm payroll employment increased in April from a year earlier in 274 out of 372 metropolitan areas, decreased in 88 and remained unchanged in 10, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Wednesday. An AGC analysis showed that of the 339 metro areas (including divisions of larger metros) for which BLS reports construction employment, 170 had increases, 123 had decreases and 46 were stagnant. (BLS combines mining and logging with construction in most metros to avoid disclosing data about industries with few employees. Metro data is not seasonally adjusted.) Pascagoula, Miss. again added the highest percentage of new construction jobs (45%, 1,700 combined jobs), followed by Napa, Calif. (36%, 800 combined jobs) [node:read-more:link]