Total U.S. construction spending had increased for a third straight month in October and accelerated from the previous two, according to figures shared Dec. 2 by the U.S. Census Bureau.

Spending in October was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $2.174 trillion, 0.4% above the revised September estimate. Economists at the Wall Street Journal had forecast a 0.2% increase in October. It followed increases of 0.1% in August and September.

U.S. Construction Spending: Month-Over-Month % Change through October 2024

source: tradingeconomics.com

The October figure was up 5.0% year-over-year.

Year-to-date, spending through the first 10 months of 2024 was up 7.2% compared to the same period in 2023.

Private Construction

October spending on private construction was at a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of pf $1.674 trillion, 0.7% above the revised September estimate. Residential construction was at a rate of $934 billion, 1.5$ above the revised September estimate, while nonresidential construction’s rate of $742.3 billion was down 0.3%.

Public Construction

October spending on public construction was at a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of $497.6 billion, 0.5% below the revised September estimate. Education construction was at a rate of $105.3 billion, 0.4% below the September estimate, while highway construction’s rate of $141.1 billion was likewise down 0.7%