Nonresidential construction spending was unchanged in October 2025 and is down 0.9% compared with October 2024, according to Associated Builders and Contractors.
For public construction, spending was up 0.1% for the month and is up 1.8% year to date. Private nonresidential spending decreased 0.2% in October 2025 and is down 2.6% year to date. Spending was up for the month in nine of the 16 nonresidential subcategories.
“Nonresidential construction failed to gather momentum at the start of 2025’s third quarter,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “While there are few sources of private nonresidential growth outside of the still surging data center category, much of the recent decline in construction spending is due to a precipitous drop in manufacturing investment. With CHIPS Act-enabled megaprojects winding down and the stiff headwind of trade policy, manufacturing construction spending has fallen by nearly 10% over the past 12 months, accounting for more than the entire decline in private nonresidential spending. Despite consistently downbeat construction industry data during the latter months of 2025, contractors remain upbeat about the first half of 2026, according to ABC’s Construction Confidence Index.”
