The numbers: Construction spending was virtually unchanged in January, but from an upwardly revised December baseline of $1.26 trillion annual rate, the Commerce Department said Thursday.
What happened: Outlays on construction remain strong. Overall spending in 2017 was about 4% higher than in 2016, and touched an all-time high. January spending was led by the public sector, which increased 1.8%, compared to a 0.5% decline for the private sector. Overall residential construction spending ticked up 0.2% during the month, but is 4.3% higher compared to January 2017.
Still, year-over-year increases are moderating, as shown in the chart above.
The big picture: Economists surveyed by MarketWatch had expected a 0.4% monthly increase in January. The upward revision to figures from November added 0.6% to the original estimate, and December's new figures added 0.1%.
In addition to residential construction, some of the categories with the biggest jumps in January included health care and public safety.
Read: U.S. jobless claims fall to lowest level since 1969
Market reaction: The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, -0.29% was down fractionally mid-morning after the Commerce Department release, which was overshadowed by the ISM manufacturing gauge and testimony from the chairman of the Federal Reserve.
What they're saying: "January spending likely was constrained by the bad weather at the start of the month, so we expect a clear rebound in February," wrote Ian Shepherdson, chief economist for Pantheon Macro. Other data, such as one that tracks architectural billings, signal rising spending in private nonresidential areas, Shepherdson noted. "Architects' inquiry levels are consistent with a clear acceleration in the rate of growth of private nonresidential spending this year."