US construction spending for July % versus 0.5% expected • total construction spending $1,972.6 billion versus $1,938.4 billion last month • Construction spending year on year +5.5% vs +3.5% prior • private construction +1.0% vs +0.5% prior • residential construction +1.4% vs +0.9% prior • Residential construction is down 5.5% y/y but that should rebound in the year ahead. What makes it so hard to read these numbers is that billions of government and government-backed dollars are going into the IRA and CHIPS act spending. (full story)