US construction spending 4-year high in July

Construction spending in the United States rose in July to the highest level in four years, fuelled mainly by higher outlays on private projects, said the US Department of Commerce.

Total construction spending was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $900.8 billion in July, the strongest performance since June 2009. It was 0.6 percent above the revised level in June and 5.2 percent higher than the year-ago reading, the Department of Commerce said Tuesday.

In July, spending on private construction was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $631.4 billion, 0.9 percent above the revised level of June. Residential construction rose 0.6 percent while non-residential construction jumped 1.3 percent on a month-over-month basis.

The estimated seasonally adjusted annual rate of public construction spending was $269.4 billion in July, down 0.3 percent from the revised June estimate.

Recent data indicate that the US housing sector has shown further signs of strength, providing important support for the overall economic recovery.