FILE - In this Feb. 13, 2015 file photo, Construction worker David Rager, 53, frames a window in the upper floor of a two-story custom home being built in Orlando, Fla. The Commerce Department releases construction spending for February on Wednesday, April 1, 2015. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack, File) (The Associated Press)
WASHINGTON – U.S. construction spending slipped for the second month in February, pulled down by a drop in single-family home building.
The Commerce Department says construction spending fell 0.1 percent in February after a revised 1.7 percent drop in January.
Private spending on construction of single-family homes declined 1.4 percent, while spending on apartments was up 4.1 percent. Nonresidential construction spending rose 0.5 percent, led by a 5.5 percent jump in hotel construction and a 6.8 percent jump in factory construction.
Private economists had expected overall spending to be flat.
Bitter winter weather likely constrained construction in many parts of the country in February. Economists predict spending to strengthen in the spring and summer.
Construction spending was up 2.1 percent from February 2014.
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