­­­Construction Put in Place, (CPIP): Total U.S. construction spending continued to perform well in June 2021, especially in the private sector. Census Bureau non-seasonally adjusted (NSA), constant dollar CPIP data showed that June’s three month total (3MT) construction expenditures grew by 11.9% year on year (y/y) to $395.8 billion. On a 12MT basis, private expenditures advanced 11.4% y/y, state & local advanced by 1.9% y/y, and federal spend decreased by 2.6% y/y.

Total Construction: Table 1 presents CPIP data for total construction for both 3MT and 12MT y/y metrics. Momentum, defined as 3MT minus 12MT, is also shown. Momentum provides market direction with green indicating stronger activity and red indicating slowing activity. Private construction accounted for 74.7% of the total three months’ expenditures ending in June. State & local spending accounted for 23.9%, while the remaining 1.4% was for federally financed projects. The private sector posted 18.1% growth for 3MT y/y and 11.4% growth for 12MT y/y, resulting in a 6.7% increase in momentum for the month of June.  

Single-family residential construction recorded a 49.1% increase on a 3MT y/y basis and a 26.2% increase on a 12MT basis. On a 3MT y/y basis, state and local construction recorded a 2.0% decrease in spending.

Non-residential Construction (NRC): Table 2 shows the breakdown of non-residential construction. The overall spend rate was +1.8% for 3MT y/y, and a 4.3% increase on a 12MT y/y basis, resulting in a 2.5% decline in momentum.

Private NRC was up 3.9% for 3MT, but the 12MT value was +4.9%, leading to a decline in momentum of 1.0%. State and local expenditures were negative for 3MT and positive for 12MT metrics.

At Gerdau, we monitor the CPIP numbers every month to keep you informed on the health of the U.S. construction market.