Armed with steady backlogs , nonresidential construction pros shrug off recession fears
Joe Bousquin , Construction Dive
Dive Brief :
■ Nonresidential contractor confidence rose in August and backlog held steady as builders shook off fears of a looming recession , according to Associated Builders and Contractors , despite evidence the Federal Reserve will need to escalate its war on inflation even more via ever higher interest rates .
■ The ABC ’ s Construction Backlog Indicator , which measures the months of work contractors have won but haven ’ t yet started , held at 8.7 months in August , the same level as July and a full month higher than August 2021 . The sustained level came amid increases in the commercial and institutional sector , as well as heavy industrial projects , even as the bookings for infrastructure projects fell .
■ The results helped buoy contractors ’ optimism for sales , staffing — and most tellingly , profit margins — over the next six months , all of which rose from July ’ s reading , though they were still below year-ago levels . Profit expectations have been hampered this year by continued inflation and higher staffing costs .
30 DITCHMEN • SEPTEMBER 2022