For January 2026, U.S. construction spending was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $2,190.4 billion, representing a 0.3% decrease from the revised December estimate of $2,197.6 billion. While the monthly figure dipped, total spending remains 1.0% higher than the January 2025 level.
Spending by Sector (January 2026)
The decline was primarily driven by weakness in the private sector, while public spending saw modest growth.
- Private Construction: Fell 0.6% to a rate of $1,661.2 billion.
- Residential: Decreased 0.8% to $933.0 billion. Within this, multifamily construction fell 0.69% and single-family fell 0.20%.
- Nonresidential: Slipped 0.4% to $728.2 billion.
- Public Construction: Rose 0.6% to a rate of $529.2 billion.
- Highways and Streets: Surged 3.3% to $148.5 billion.
- Educational: Dipped 0.2% to $114.1 billion.
Market Context & Trends
- Performance vs. Forecast: The 0.3% drop missed economist expectations, which had predicted a slight 0.1% increase.
- Revisions: The December 2025 figure was revised upward to show a 0.8% increase, which had been the largest monthly jump since early 2024.
- Cost Pressures: Construction input prices have increased more than 43% since early 2020, with specific materials like fabricated structural metal rising over 63%.
- Labor Shortage: Approximately 500,000 additional workers are estimated to be needed in 2026 to meet projected demand, with 94% of contractors reporting difficulty filling positions.
Would you like to see a breakdown of spending for a specific nonresidential category, such as manufacturing or data centers?
The latest Atlanta Fed GDPNow estimate for real GDP growth in the first quarter of 2026 is 2.0 percent as of March 23, 2026.
Latest Update Summary (March 23, 2026)
- Current Estimate: 2.0% (seasonally adjusted annual rate).
- Previous Estimate: 2.3% (on March 19).
- Reason for Change: A decrease in the nowcast for real private fixed investment growth, which fell from 3.1% to 1.2% following a construction spending report from the US Census Bureau.
- Next Update: Scheduled for Wednesday, April 1, 2026.
Recent Estimate Trend (Q1 2026)
The model has seen several downward revisions in March 2026:
- March 23 2.0% Lower private fixed investment growth.
- March 19 2.3% Lower gross private domestic investment.
- March 13 2.7% Minor downward adjustments to investment and government spending.
- March 12 2.7% Upward revision from 2.1% due to stronger investment and exports.
- March 06 2.1% Significant drop from 3.0% due to weaker consumer spending and investment.
Would you like a breakdown of the specific subcomponents (like consumer spending or net exports) contributing to this 2.0% estimate?
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