ABC’s Construction Backlog Indicator is the only economic indicator that reflects the amount of work that will be performed by commercial and industrial construction contractors in the months ahead. The Construction Confidence Index is a diffusion index that signals construction contractors’ expectations for sales, profit margins and staffing levels. View the methodology for both indicators. 

 

News Releases

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News Releases

WASHINGTON, May 29—In April, for the second month in a row, estimated not seasonally adjusted construction unemployment rates fell nationally and in 49 states on a year-over-year basis, according to an analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data released today by Associated Builders and Contractors. Mississippi was the only state with an increase, where construction unemployment rose from 9.2% in April 2018 to 10% in the most recent report.

WASHINGTON, May 23—Construction industry leaders remained upbeat with respect to nonresidential construction prospects in March 2019, according to the latest Construction Confidence Index released today by Associated Builders and Contractors.

  WASHINGTON, May 21—Associated Builders and Contractors reports that its monthly Construction Backlog Indicator expanded to 9.5 months in March 2019, up 0.7 months or 8.8% since February 2019 when CBI stood at 8.8 months.

WASHINGTON, May 16—Associated Builders and Contractors President and CEO Michael Bellaman commented today on President Trump’s new immigration proposal, which would create a “merit-based” visa system to address the workforce needs of U.S. industries like construction. Bellaman said:

WASHINGTON, May 9—Construction input prices increased 0.9% in April on a monthly basis and 2.4% compared to the same time last year, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data released today. Nonresidential input prices rose 0.9% compared to March and are up 2.8% on an annual basis.

WASHINGTON, May 7—Construction Executive, the magazine for the business of construction, won an ASAE 2019 Gold Circle Award in the e-newsletter category for CE This Week. The customizable weekly newsletter was launched in 2018 along with a newconstructionexec.com website to celebrate the magazine’s 15th anniversary as the leading source for news, market developments and business issues impacting the construction industry.

WASHINGTON, May 6—Associated Builders and Contractors released its 2019 Safety Performance Report today, an annual assessment that furthers the construction industry’s understanding of how to achieve world-class safety through its STEP Safety Management System. Published in conjunction with Construction Safety Week, the report documents the dramatic impact of using proactive safety practices to reduce recordable incidents by up to 85%, making the best-performing companies 680% safer than the industry average.

WASHINGTON, May 3 – The construction industry added 33,000 net new jobs in April, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released today. Compared to the same time last year, industry employment is up by 256,000 jobs, an increase of 3.5 percent.

WASHINGTON, May 1— According to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data released today, national nonresidential construction spending declined 0.3% in March 2019. On a seasonally adjusted, annualized basis, nonresidential spending totaled $775.2 billion for the month, which represents a 4.8% increase compared to the same time last year.

ABC construction economic releases are published according to this schedule in 2023

For media inquiries, please contact Erika Walter, ABC director of media relations, at [email protected].

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