Construction Spending Drops 1.3%

Construction spending fell in February to its lowest level in more than seven years, the Commerce Department reported.

The 1.3% decline to a $846.2 billion level for the month followed a 1.4% drop in January that was more than twice as large as originally reported, Commerce said.

The drop exceeded economists' forecasts of a 1% drop, Bloomberg reported. Construction spending fell 13% in the 12 months ended in February.

Private residential construction decreased 2.1%, while spending on private non-residential construction projects fell 0.4%. Public construction declined 1.7%.

Construction spending can boost demand for trucking services because spending increases the number of shipments of goods and building materials.