09/04/2026
We don't mean to keep you, but there's one more thing before you close the laptop for the long weekend 💻 🫡
August's economic numbers are in, and the construction industry's story right now is really two stories depending on where your work lives.
Nonresidential construction spending ticked up in June, but is still down more than 2% year-over-year. Take away data centers, and private nonresidential spending is down nearly 8% over the past year. The data center boom is full-throttle, but it's carrying a lot of weight for the rest of the market.
Here are a few additional highlights to know as we head into the fall:
🤝 Hiring is Healthy
The industry added 22,000 jobs in July, with nonresidential specialty trade contractors seeing particularly strong demand (driven largely, again, by data center construction).
🧐 Backlog Dropped
ABC's Construction Backlog Indicator fell to 8.0 months in July, down 0.8 months from June as well as one year ago. Every region, company size, and industry segment saw a decline. However, contractors remain cautiously optimistic on sales, margins, and staffing.
📈 Materials Costs Aren't Done Climbing
July saw a modest dip thanks to temporarily lower fuel prices, but with oil rebounding and iron, steel, and copper prices continuing to rise (plus the 50% tariffs placed on many Canadian materials in August), expect further escalation in the months ahead.
Long story short: If your pipeline includes data center work, the outlook is looking pretty strong. If it doesn't, time will need to be spend over the next several months carefully planning costs and available project opportunities (top of that Tuesday to-do list? Log into the Online Plan Room 😉).
👉 Give the economic round-up a read before heading out: https://constructionexec.com/article/construction-futures-august-2026-economic-roundup/
