U.S. construction spending jumped 0.9 percent in March, more than twice expectations, to a record high on the back of soaring outlays on private residential building, a government report showed on Monday.
Construction spending rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1.199 trillion in March from an upwardly revised $1.189 trillion rate in February, the Commerce Department reported.
That increase topped Wall Street forecasts of a 0.4 percent gain in construction spending.
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Both private and public construction spending hit new highs in March, as did private residential construction, the department said.
Private construction spending jumped 1.1 percent to $940.8 billion as private residential construction climbed 1.6 percent to $672.9 billion.
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But private nonresidential construction, seen as a proxy for business spending, dipped 0.1 percent in March to $267.9 billion.
Public-sector construction spending increased 0.2 percent to $258.2 billion. Government construction spending increased in many categories, including residential, commercial, health care, public safety and power.














