U.S. Construction Spending Unexpectedly Rises 0.2% In August

(RTTNews) - Construction spending in the U.S. unexpectedly saw a modest increase in the month of August, according to a report released by the Commerce Department on Monday.

The Commerce Department said construction spending crept up by 0.2 percent to an annual rate of $2.169 trillion in August after rising by 0.2 percent to a revised rate of $2.165 trillion in July.

Economists had expected construction spending to edge down by 0.1 percent, matching the dip originally reported for the previous month.

The unexpected uptick by total construction spending came as spending on private construction rose by 0.3 percent to an annual rate of $1.652 trillion.

Spending on residential construction grew by 0.8 percent to an annual rate of $914.8 billion, more than offsetting a 0.3 percent dip in spending on non-residential construction to an annual rate of $737.3 billion.

Meanwhile, the report said spending on public construction was virtually unchanged from the previous month at an annual rate of $517.3 billion.

While spending on educational construction climbed by 0.6 percent to an annual rate of $112.6 billion, spending on highway construction slipped by 0.2 percent to an annual rate of $142.5 billion.