US construction spending fell a sharper-than-expected 1.7 percent in January, led by a fall-off in private home building, government data on Monday showed in a report that marked a continued decline in the housing market.
January's decline to a $1.121 trillion seasonally adjusted annual rate was the sharpest since a 3.6 percent deceleration in January 1994 and marked the fourth straight monthly drop.
Private home construction fell 3 percent in January to a $455.8 billion rate, the 23rd consecutive monthly decrease since a peak in February 2006. Private spending on home building was off 19.7 percent from a year ago, the report said.
In other declines, private construction was off 2.2 percent, the sharpest since a 2.6 percent drop in January 1994, while private non-residential construction fell 1.2 percent. The only major sector to increase was federal construction, rising 4.2 percent.