“Construction put in place continued to lose steam in May but is still ahead of the pace in 2002,” said Kenneth D. Simonson, chief economist for the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC), the nation’s leading construction trade association. “Dual data series from the Census Bureau, plus sharp revisions to past numbers, make the current picture murkier than usual but show there are still areas of strength in nonresidential construction.”
Simonson was referring to today’s release by the Census Bureau of data on the value of construction put in place in May 2003, along with revisions dating back to January 1999. He explained that the agency currently uses two sets of classifications, with different seasonal adjustments, but that the traditional classification, currently highlighted in the monthly press release, will be discontinued after today’s release.