U.S. Construction Spending Up in August

U.S. construction spending climbed 0.4 percent in August, coming in at a record high of $1.104 trillion, according to a Department of Commerce report released Oct. 3.

The August 2005 numbers show a 6.1 percent increase over August 2004 spending.

Both the private and public sectors reported increases in spending, with a 0.4 and 0.5 boost from July, respectively.

Residential construction increased by 0.2 percent from the previous month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $858.4 billion while nonresidential increased 0.8 percent over July.

According to a release from the Department of Commerce, Hurricane Katrina had a minimal effect on August construction spending because the affected areas accounted for only approximately 1.l percent of total permit authorizations in 2004 and about 2.4 percent of the permit activity in the Southern region.