Construction spending dropped 0.2 percent vs flat expectation. Nonresidential declined 0.5 percent. 
The Monthly Construction Spending report has weak numbers for January.
Total Construction Spending
- Construction spending during January 2025 was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $2,192.5 billion, 0.2 percent (±0.7 percent) below the revised December estimate of $2,196.0 billion.
- The January figure is 3.3 percent (±1.3 percent) above the January 2024 estimate of $2,122.2 billion.
Private Construction Spending
- Spending on private construction was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1,686.0 billion, 0.2 percent (±0.7 percent) below the revised December estimate of $1,690.1 billion.
- Residential construction was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $932.7 billion in January, 0.4 percent (±1.3 percent) below the revised December estimate of $936.9 billion.
- Nonresidential construction was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $753.3 billion in January, virtually unchanged from (±0.7 percent)* the revised December estimate of $753.2 billion.
Public Construction Spending
- Spending on Public Construction was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of public construction spending was $506.6 billion, 0.1 percent (±1.3 percent) above the revised December estimate of $505.9 billion.
- Educational construction was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $109.8 billion, 0.4 percent (±2.0 percent) below the revised December estimate of $110.3 billion.
- Highway construction was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $145.0 billion, 0.6 percent (±3.9 percent) above the revised December estimate of $144.1 billion.
Construction Spending Millions of Dollars
Public plus private equals total spending. So does residential plus nonresidential.
A decline of 0.5 percent on residential construction was the key item to the unexpected overall decline.
Data is weakening on many fronts simultaneously.
Related Posts
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February 27, 2025: Initial Unemployment Claims Spike by 22,000 Not DOGE Related
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March 3, 2025: A Weak ISM Report Shows New Orders and Employment Back in Contraction
March 2, 2025: How One Small Business Owner Is Coping With Trump’s Tariffs
I wanted to get this report out before discussing GDPNow because today’s reports had a serious impact on the further plunge.
Never forget 5 of the last 5 recessions were all under Republican presidents.
Did you load up on SPY PUTS? Cause I’m putting on the ritz….
I’ve got diamond hands, gonna hold until Trump crashes the money train hard. Don’t look now but Japan stocks down 2% across the board.
The S&P 500 is down over 5% from its peak on February 19, the largest pullback since last August. This is now the 30th correction >5% off of a high since the March 2009 low. They all seemed like the end of the world at the time
Except the last few times we didn’t have a pyromaniac running the government and you can take that to the bank.
4.15% Midnight! and dropping!!!!
What is the strike price and expiration of those puts? In case you haven’t noticed, Trump is vain, considers himself a business mastermind, and has a huge ego. All it’s going to take is a few headlines like “stock market crashing under Trump” or god forbid, “stock market was performing better under Biden” and Trump will reverse course on these tariffs faster than you can say “I lost my ass shorting XHB.” Markets will soar. Maybe we’ll call it the Trump Put?
Oh now you want to know? I wrote about that months ago but the best profits are when support levels are broken, look it up Rick.
Sorry I missed that detail. I don’t spend all day and night on this blog like you do.
Yes if only we threw more money to USAID to teach transgender magicians in Botswana we could pump those GDP numbers up.
4.15%!!!!!
I believe your numbers, but it’s not my fault. Since my county reminded me my current renovation is theirs until they bless it and I have to pay others to do everything … I’m spending a fortune. Apparently I’m not the norm anymore.
Fed GDPNow Q1 has dropped to -2.8%.
Everybody & their brother are importing to beat Trump’s tariffs.
PapaD, the CA & MX tariffs go live tomorrow!
To be continued: looking forward to see what the Q3 data looks like.
Great! It’s about time. Residential construction usually leads us into a recession.
Lumber is @ $654 / 1000 bf which is just crazy!
By the 3rd quarter of 2021, 70% of Americans had had one shot.
At the same time, group life policies showed an 80% increase in excess mortality for ages 25-44.
https://t.me/EdwardDowdReal/1294
wow….
Don’t care about your stupid conspiracy garbage.
Meanwhile:
Natural Gas prices are up as demand is up. Exports hit a record of 15.6 bcfpd in February boosted by new units at the Venture Global Plaquemines plant. And last week, Cheniere began producing LNG at the new Stage 3 in Corpus Christi. LNG exports will continue to grow for the rest of the decade.
Fortunately, US natural gas production also hit a record 104.7 bcfpd in Feb.
Prices are up – demand is up…. production and is now decreasing …
https://fasteddynz.substack.com/p/natural-gas-production-is-contracting
If you put more straws into a milkshake and suck harder… you do not increase the volume of the milkshake… but you do empty the cup faster
hahaha
Physics
Homes in Newport Beach and Boston are selling fast because jobs want people back in the office.. Homes in areas popular with the work from home crowd, like TN and FL are getting smoked. Work from home is over … that is the story.
The stock market isn’t the only thing that plunged today.
$Melania meme coin hit another record low (as it has every day since it was released).
It’s not too late to stock up and ride it all the way down to zero.
Trump recession is nearly here. He got handed something ok and has made it worse in 6 weeks .
Lmaooooo. Something ok. Lmaooooo
I admit I missed your constantly negative tropes, Midnight; you were gone for awhile. I hope Mish didn’t ban you and you instead were on a warm trip with close family.
But I’m not surprised you’ve already commented here multiple times; evidence contrary to your political POV really gets you fired up.
Casual Observer is obviously correct. It wasn’t all clouds and unicorns under Biden for sure, but real GDP increased every single quarter and unemployment was historically low (even with all the immigrants).
Now that the promised Trumpian cuts and constant chaos has ensued, people (and especially businesses) have started to cut back. And it only takes so much for that snowball to get rolling. “Better get out of the way below” (to all the MAGA poor) – this is going to run you over
Ending the inflationary depression will not be pretty. And that’s a good thing.
You also seem to be missing my point. Trump is a vessel to get things accomplished. I voted for Nader twice. Most people who vote for him are less MAGA than realizing the Democratic party looks nothing like it used to. See Elon and Trump himself as examples
4.15%%%%%%%
Coldest January since 1988. Plus the senile vegetable was still there. But ending the bubbles is glorious.