Economy

ABI Slows in October

November 20, 2013

After three months of increases, the Architecture Billing Index dropped to 51.6 in October from 54.3 in September, indicating a slower pace of growth for construction design activity. The new project inquiry index, an indicator for future demand, rose to 61.5 from 58.6 last month.

Calculated on a three month moving average, the regional averages were as follows: West 55.9, South 54.4, Midwest 51.6, and Northeast 49.7. The averages dropped in the West and Northeast but were up slightly in the South and Midwest this month.

The sector indexes all remained in the growth range above 50 as indicated: multi-family residential 57.0, commercial/industrial 53.7, mixed practice 53.2, and institutional 50.2.

“There continues to be a lot of uncertainty surrounding the overall U.S. economic outlook and therefore in the demand for nonresidential facilities, which often translates into slower progress on new building projects,” said AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker, Hon. AIA, PhD. “That is particularly true when you factor in the federal government shutdown that delayed many projects that were in the planning or design phases.”

{amchart id=”64″ AIA ABI Index}