Seasonally adjusted nonfarm payroll employment increased in 38 states and the District of Columbia in April and decreased in 12 states, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported on May 21. Compared to April 2009, employment rose in North Dakota (2%), Alaska and D.C. (1% each), but fell in 48 states. Construction employment rose for the month in 29 states, fell in 18 and was unchanged in three plus D.C. Construction employment rose from year-ago levels in North Dakota (8%, 1,300 jobs); Kansas (6%, 3,800 jobs); Alaska (0.6%, 100 jobs); and Arkansas (0.4%, 300 jobs). Year-over-year employment fell in 46 states plus D.C., with the largest percentage declines in Nevada, -28%; Colorado, -19%; Vermont, -17%; Washington, Idaho and Maine, -16% each. Among 337 metro areas, AGC calculated that construction employment rose compared to April 2009 in 17, held steady in 28, and decreased in 292. The four states and 17 metro areas with increases were the most in more than a year. Five areas recorded double-digit percentage gains: Eau Claire, Wisconsin (24%, 600 jobs); Haverhill-North Andover-Amesbury, straddling the Massachusetts-New Hampshire border (14%, 500 jobs); Bismarck, N.D. (13%, 400 jobs); Bay City, Michigan (11%, 100 jobs); and Hanford-Corcoran, California (11%, 100 jobs). The largest number of jobs was added in Kansas City, Kan. (1,400 jobs, 8%). The metros with the steepest construction job losses were Monroe, Mich., -46%, Flagstaff, Arizona, -32%; Las Vegas-Paradise, -31%; and Napa and El Centro, Cal., -29% each. (Metro data is not seasonally adjusted; data for most metros, D.C. and six states includes logging and mining to avoid disclosure of data for sectors with few firms.)

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DESPITE SLIGHT IMPROVEMENTS, CONSTRUCTION EMPLOYMENT DECLINES IN 292 OUT OF 337 METROPOLITAN AREAS BETWEEN APRIL 2009 AND 2010

Most Jobs Added in Kansas City, Kansas While Eau Claire, Wisconsin Has Highest Rate of Job Growth; Monroe, Michigan Has Highest Rate of Decline and Chicago Loses Most Jobs

Construction employment increased between April 2009 and 2010 in more metro areas - 17 - than at any point during the past 12 months, according to a new analysis of federal employment data released by the Associated General Contractors of America.  Association officials noted that even though construction job losses were less widespread than in previous months, the industry is still shedding workers in most metropolitan areas.

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29 STATES ADD CONSTRUCTION JOBS BETWEEN MARCH AND APRIL AS STIMULUS-FUNDED PROJECTS AND HOUSING STARTS PICK UP

Kansas and North Dakota Experience Highest Monthly and Annual Percentage Gains, While Maine and Vermont Top Monthly Job Losses for Construction Industry 

Increases in stimulus-funded projects and growing demand for single family construction helped boost monthly construction employment in 29 states between March and April, according to a new analysis of federal employment figures released today by the Associated General Contractors of America.   Despite the recent gains, 46 states and the District of Columbia lost construction jobs over the past twelve months.

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The producer price index (PPI) for finished goods rose 0.2% in April, not seasonally adjusted (but fell 0.1%, seasonally adjusted) and 5.5% over the past 12 months, the Bureau of Labor Statistics announced on Tuesday. Contractors were again squeezed by rising input costs and falling bid prices. The PPI for inputs to construction industries, a weighted average of the cost of materials used in every type of construction plus items consumed by contractors, such as diesel fuel, jumped 1.1% for the month and 5.7% over 12 months. Highway and street construction experienced increases of 1.1% and 8.3%; other heavy construction, 1.1% and 6.7%; nonresidential buildings, 1.0% and 5.1%; multi-unit residential, 0.9% and 4.1%; and single-unit, 0.9% and 3.9%. The PPI for new building construction, which reflects contractors' labor, overhead and profit as well as materials, fell 0.1% and 4.3% for offices; new industrial buildings, 0 and -4.0%; new warehouses, +0.2% and -4.6%; and new schools, +0.7% and -1.5%. Notable materials cost increases included diesel fuel, 6.5% and 43%; steel mill products, 5.2% and 25%; lumber and plywood, 4.7% and 20%; copper and brass mill shapes, 4.3% and 30%; aluminum mill shapes, 3.6% and 18%; and asphalt paving mixtures and blocks, 1.2% and 7.9%. Gypsum products rose 4.7% for the month but were down 7.5% from a year ago. The PPI for concrete products slipped 0.5% and 2.2%.

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CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTORS CAUGHT BETWEEN RISING MATERIALS COSTS AND STAGNANT PRICES FOR CONSTRUCTION SERVICES

Analysis of New April Producer Price Index Shows Increasing Pressure on Contractors to Raise Prices to Survive, Construction Economist Notes

Construction contractors continue to be squeezed between rising materials costs and falling output prices according to a new analysis of materials costs conducted by the Associated General Contractors of America.  The association noted that even as the producer price index leapt in April for key construction components, the amount contractors charge for construction services remains depressed. (more…)

The value of construction starts in January through April 2010 was 11% higher than in the same months of 2009, Reed Construction Data reported on Tuesday, based on data it compiled. April starts were 6.6% higher than March starts. "a little short of the usual seasonal gain in April. So April has to be interpreted as approximately steady with March," said Reed Chief Economist Jim Haughey. "April starts were 25% higher than a year ago but there is no clear signal yet that the economic recovery has reached the construction market….The economic environment for construction is clearly improving. Contractors added 40,000 jobs in the last two months. Buildings funded by the stimulus plan are beginning to be started. And the rise in the commercial vacancy rate is now slowing. The post-stimulus slide in heavy project starts continued in April. Starts fell 3.4% from March and were off 40% from the stimulus-boosted peak last August. The stimulus impact in the heavy market continues to ebb month to month. But no further significant decline is expected as delayed transportation and water-sewer projects replace slipping highway project starts. April nonresidential building starts were 13% above March, about double the usual seasonal gain, and 31% higher than a year ago [but] 19% below the 2006 to 2008 average….the April starts gain was due to a big rebound in hospital starts after four weak months, plus smaller pickups in education and commercial buildings."

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Nonfarm payroll employment in April jumped by 290,000, seasonally adjusted, but the unemployment rate also rose, to 9.9%, as rising job prospects drew more job-seekers, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported on Friday. Construction employment climbed for the second straight month, by 14,000 (0.2%), and the March increase was revised up to 26,000 from an initial estimate of 15,000. Despite the two-month rise, employment in April totaled only 5,625,000, down 554,000 (9.0%) from a year before and 2,100,000 (27%) from the peak in August 2006. In both months, the gains were limited to nonresidential categories, which added 24,600 jobs in April and 36,500 in March: nonresidential specialty contractors (6,200 and 15,500), nonresidential building (9,200 and 12,300), and heavy and civil engineering construction (9,200 and 8,700). In contrast, residential construction fell for the 37th straight month in April (-10,900, following a loss of 10,100 jobs in March), with losses in both residential specialty trades (-6,900 and -10,200) and residential building (-4,000 and +100). The unemployment rate in construction, which is not seasonally adjusted and therefore can be meaningfully compared to previous Aprils but not other months, was 21.8%, the highest April figure since the series began in 1976 and more than double the all-industry rate. BLS estimated that 1,919,000 would-be construction workers were unemployed (not seasonally adjusted). Average hourly earnings in construction fell 6 cents in April to $25.17, seasonally adjusted, and were only 1.6% higher than in April 2009. Architectural and engineering services employment, a precursor to construction, fell by 3,500 (0.3%), seasonally adjusted, about half of the average monthly loss in the past year (-5,800).

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View AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson's presentation on the outlook for construction activity, materials and labor.

CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY ADDS ANOTHER 14,000 JOBS IN APRIL AS THE NUMBER AND SCOPE OF STIMULUS-FUNDED PROJECTS CONTINUES TO GROW

Industry's Recovery Remains Tentative with Unemployment at 21.8 Percent, Stimulus Funding Likely to Expire Before Private-Sector Construction Demand Resumes, Economist Notes 

Construction firms added 14,000 new jobs in April, the second consecutive month of employment gains for the industry, according to an analysis of new federal figures released today by the Associated General Contractors of America.  After more than two years of dramatic job losses, the construction industry is once again adding jobs, thanks primarily to the increasing number of stimulus-funded projects now underway, the association noted.

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STIMULUS, OTHER PUBLIC INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENTS GIVE MONTHLY BOOST TO NATIONAL CONSTRUCTION SPENDING FIGURES IN MARCH

2.3 Percent Increase in Public Spending Outweighs 0.9 Percent Drop in Private Construction Activity to Boost Overall Construction Spending Between February and March

Increases in public-sector construction spending, driven by stimulus funds, helped boost total construction activity by almost $2 billion between February and March, according to a new analysis of federal spending figures released today by the Associated General Contractors of America. The figures show that the stimulus has gone from slowing declines in construction spending to contributing to increases, the association noted.

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