Economy

ABI Unchanged for a Third Month
Written by Sandy Williams
September 23, 2020
The Architecture Billings Index remained stuck at a score of 40 for the third consecutive month in August, indicating a prolonged decline in billing activity at architecture firms. The new project inquiries index provided a glimmer of optimism, rising for the first time since February to a positive score of 51.5. The value of new design contracts rose as well but remained below the 50 neutral point at 46.0.
Firms that specialize in multifamily residential construction noted the first sign of growth since the pandemic began, however, the commercial industrial sector remained very weak. By sector, the indexes for August were: multi-family residential, 49.4; mixed practice, 41.9; institutional, 40.2; and commercial/industrial, 35.5.
“Unfortunately, since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, many architecture firms are finding fewer inquiries that convert to billable projects,” said American Institute of Architects chief economist, Kermit Baker. “While fewer firms reported declining billings in August than during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, the fact that the score has been unchanged for the last three months shows that the recovery from this downturn is not progressing at the pace we had hoped to see.”
Scores across all regions remained in contraction in August with the Midwest highest at 41.7 and the Northeast lowest at 33.9. The averages in the South and West were 41.6 and 41.3, respectively.
Below is a graph showing the history of the AIA Architecture Billings Index and Inquiries Index. You will need to view the graph on our website to use its interactive features; you can do so by clicking here. If you need assistance logging in to or navigating the website, please contact us at info@SteelMarketUpdate.com.

Sandy Williams
Read more from Sandy WilliamsLatest in Economy

Steel groups welcome passage of budget bill
Steel trade groups praised the passage of the Big Beautiful Bill (BBB) in Congress on Thursday.

Industry groups praise Senate for passing tax and budget bill
The Steel Manufacturers Association and the American Iron and Steel Institute applauded the tax provisions included in the Senate's tax and budget reconciliation bill.

Chicago PMI dips 0.1 points in June
The Chicago Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) slipped 0.1 points to 40.4 points, in June.

Multi-family pullback drives housing starts to 5-year low in May
US housing starts tumbled in May to a five-year low, according to figures recently released by the US Census Bureau.

Architecture firms still struggling, ABI data shows
Architecture firms reported a modest improvement in billings through May, yet business conditions remained soft, according to the latest Architecture Billings Index (ABI) release from the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and Deltek.