A report released by the Commerce Department on Tuesday showed construction spending in the U.S. unexpectedly edged slightly lower in the month of July.
The Commerce Department said construction spending slipped by 0.1 percent to an annual rate of $2.139 trillion in July after falling by 0.4 to a revised rate of $2.141 trillion in June. Economists had expected construction spending to inch up by 0.1 percent.
With the unexpected dip, construction spending fell to its lowest annual rate since hitting $2.123 trillion in September 2023.
The modest decline by construction spending came amid a decrease by spending on private construction, which dipped by 0.2 percent to an annual rate of $1.623 trillion.
Spending on non-residential construction fell by 0.5 percent to an annual rate of $736.7 billion, more than offsetting a 0.1 percent uptick in spending on residential construction to an annual rate of $886.5 trillion.
On the other hand, the Commerce Department spending on public construction rose by 0.3 percent to an annual rate of $515.8 billion.