U.S. Construction Spending Fell 1.3% in June

Spending on construction across the U.S. unexpectedly declined in June.

Total U.S. construction spending decreased 1.3% from May to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1.206 trillion, the Commerce Department said Tuesday.

Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal had expected 0.5% growth in June.

The data were not adjusted for inflation.

Public spending plunged 5.4% from May, its largest one-month drop since March 2002, to the lowest dollar level since February 2014. Private spending on construction ticked down 0.1% in June.

In the first half of 2017, overall construction spending rose 4.8% compared with a year earlier. Private spending rose 8% while spending by government agencies fell 5.4%.

The Commerce Department's latest report on construction spending can be accessed at:

https://www.census.gov/construction/c30/pdf/release.pdf

Write to Ben Leubsdorf at ben.leubsdorf@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

August 01, 2017 10:24 ET (14:24 GMT)