­­­Construction Put-in-Place, (CPIP): Total U.S. construction spending continued to perform well in August 2023, especially in the private sector. Census Bureau non-seasonally adjusted (NSA), constant dollar CPIP data showed that August’s three month total (3MT) construction expenditures grew by 3.3% year on year (y/y) to 279.8 billion. On a 12MT basis, private expenditures decreased by 4.0% y/y.

Please note: We have adjusted our methodology to account for inflation (2012$)

Total Construction: Table 1 presents CPIP data for total construction for both 3-month total and 12-month total y/y metrics. Momentum, defined as 3MT minus 12MT, is also shown. Momentum provides market direction with green indicating stronger activity and red indicating slowing activity. Private construction accounted for 77.4% of the total three months’ expenditures ending in August, while public spending accounted for 22.6%. The private sector posted 0.7% growth for 3MT y/y and 4.0% contraction for 12MT y/y, resulting in a 4.7% increase in momentum for the month of August.  

At Gerdau we monitor the CPIP numbers every month to keep you informed on the health of the U.S. construction market.