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U.S. construction spending rose a slight 0.1% in July

FILE - In this July 29, 2019, file photo a construction worker helps build a scaffolding on the side of a hotel in the Mount Vernon section of Baltimore on July 29, 2019. On Tuesday, Sept. 3, the Commerce Department reports on U.S. construction spending in July. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez, File) ORG XMIT: NYBZ209 (Julio Cortez / AP)
By Josh Boak Associated Press

WASHINGTON – U.S. construction spending ticked up just 0.1% in July, aided by government spending on schools, sewers and the water supply.

The Commerce Department said Tuesday spending on construction projects in July occurred at a seasonally adjusted annual pace of $1.29 trillion. So far this year, construction spending has tumbled 2.1%, dragged down by a sharp pullback in expenditures for homebuilding.

Construction for single-family houses picked up 1.4% in July, a possible response to lower mortgage rates. But private spending on the building of apartments, lodging and commercial spaces fell. Overall, private construction spending slipped 0.1%

Government spending accounted for July’s increase, as construction spending rose 0.4%. State and local governments accounted for most of the gains as spending on school construction rose. But federal construction spending fell 2.4%.