U.S. Construction Spending Climbs Much More Than Expected In October

(RTTNews) - A report released by the Commerce Department on Wednesday showing construction spending in the U.S. increased by much more than expected in the month of October.

The Commerce Department said construction spending climbed by 0.5 percent to an annual rate of $2.175 trillion in October after falling by 0.6 percent to an annual rate of $2.164 trillion in September. Economists had expected construction spending to inch up by 0.1 percent.

The bigger than expected increase by total construction spending came as spending on private construction grew by 0.6 percent to an annual rate of $1.651 trillion.

Spending on residential construction led the way higher, jumping by 1.3 percent to an annual rate of $913.9 billion, while spending on non-residential construction edged up by 0.2 percent to an annual rate of $737.4 billion.

Meanwhile, the Commerce Department said spending on public construction inched up by 0.1 percent to an annual rate of $524.0 billion.

Spending on educational construction climbed by 0.7 percent to an annual rate of $114.8 billion, while spending on highway construction crept up by 0.1 percent to an annual rate of $141.6 billion.