May 2, 2005 10:30 AM, EDT

March Construction Spending Rises 0.5% to Record Rate

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he Commerce Department said Monday that construction spending rose 0.5% in March to a record $1.052 trillion annual pace.

The level topped February’s $1.05 trillion, which had also been a record.

onstruction spending can boost demand for trucking services because spending increases the number of shipments of goods and building materials.

The 14th month of consecutive increases was the longest since records began being kept in 1993, Bloomberg reported.

Rising builder backlogs and a record pace of new home sales will probably lead to more housing construction, Bloomberg reported.

Private residential construction, which accounts for more than half of construction spending, rose 0.3% to a $585.3 billion annual rate, Commerce said. Non-residential construction rose 0.5% to an $815.5 billion rate.

Construction spending by the government rose 0.3%, while public spending on road projects dropped 0.4% to $69 billion.