U.S. construction spending sank 0.4% in November to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1.12 trillion, the Commerce Department reported Monday.
That was well below the 0.9% gain expected by economists surveyed by MarketWatch. The October increase, originally reported as 1.0%, was revised down to 0.3%, although the level was revised up as the Commerce Department revised 10 years’ worth of data to account for a processing error.
In November, spending was 10.5% higher compared to a year ago. Private construction was down 0.2% during the month, but 12.1% higher for the year. That was thanks in large part to strength in residential construction, up 0.3% in November and 10.8% for the last 12 months.