National non-residential construction spending declined 1% last month, said ABC. On a seasonally adjusted annualized basis, non-residential spending totalled US$1.18 trillion.

Private non-residential spending fell 0.9%, while public non-residential construction spending was down 1.2% in February.

鈥淰irtually every non-residential construction segment experienced a decline in spending in February,鈥� confirmed ABC chief economist Anirban Basu. 鈥淚n certain instances, the monthly decline was sharp, including health care (-2.2%), commercial (-1.9%) and water supply (-1.8%).鈥�

Basu noted it鈥檚 not concrete what the dip means for future activity.

鈥淭he optimist will likely shrug off both the January and February non-residential construction spending declines as merely reflecting winter weather,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he pessimist will proclaim this release a wake-up call to contractors and an indication that higher interest rates have finally begun to make their mark.鈥�

Basu noted that while the majority of segments are seeing monthly decreases in spending, all segments have experienced year-over-year growth in spending.

鈥淚n 10 instances, construction spending has increased more than 10%, including 36% growth in the public safety category and 32% in manufacturing,鈥� he said. 鈥淢oreover, indicates that contractors remain confident with respect to their sales over the next six months, signalling that the data could improve with the weather.鈥�