Dodge Data & Analytics, New York, has reported construction starts rose 34.1% in May after climbing 9% in April.
Nonresidential building construction rose 17.8% in May as manufacturing starts surged 116.1%; institutional starts climbed 17.4%; and commercial starts increased 0.8%.
Residential building construction fell by 2.1% in May. Single-family housing decreased 1%, and multifamily starts fell 3.7%.
Nonbuilding construction surged 91.9% in May.
For the 12 months ending May, total construction starts were up 12.5% compared with the 12 months ending May 2025. Nonbuilding construction rose 33.2%; nonresidential building climbed 11.7%; and residential building fell 4.6%.
“Megaproject starts within healthcare, manufacturing, utilities and data centers drove sizeable gains across the month,” said Sarah Martin, director of economic research at Dodge Construction Network. “Outside of this activity, however, pockets of weakness across institutional construction, warehouses and residential construction remain.”
