WASHINGTON —  U.S. construction spending rose a stronger-than-expected 0.3 percent to a record high in June on gains in nonresidential and public building, but private residential construction fell for the third month in a row as the housing market cooled, a government report on Tuesday showed.

Construction spending rose to a seasonally adjusted $1.217 trillion annual rate in June from May's $1.214 trillion, according to the Commerce Department.

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Analysts polled by Reuters were expecting a 0.1 percent gain.

Private residential construction spending dipped 1 percent to an annual $641.60 billion pace following a 1.4 percent slide in May and a 1 percent fall in April. The last time there were three consecutive drops in private residential construction spending was in June-August 2001.

Meanwhile, outlays for private nonresidential construction climbed 2.7 percent to an annual $303.11 billion rate in June and public construction spending climbed 0.8 percent to a $272.54 billion rate. Both categories were at record high levels.

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Private nonresidential spending surged 21.6 percent since June of last year.

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