ConstructConnect Blog

The vertical bars in Graph 1 tell the story of housing starts in the United States. The monthly numbers of actual groundbreakings in units are seasonally adjusted at an annual rate (SAAR). ‘Annualized’ means they are projected from a single month to 12 months.

U.S. Retail Sales take Exuberant Route There are a lot of explanations for why souped-up inflation has become so troubling in recent months. Heading the list is supply shortages.

Due to its complexity, much of the subject matter concerning the economy requires detailed editorial commentary, often supported by relevant tables and graphs.

Cash flow is the lifeblood of any commercial construction project. Being able to effectively manage cash flows on projects and throughout the year can be the difference between the success and failure of your business.

The U.S. foreign trade deficit deteriorated further in the latest month, sinking to -$972 billion USD in September 2021, an unwelcome record. The shortfall comes entirely in the trade of ‘goods,’ -$1.178 billion. The ‘services’ balance, which includes business and tourism travel, plus between-country costs of transporting cargo, remained above water, +$206 billion USD.

The accompanying table records the 10 largest construction project starts in Canada in October 2021. Also included is the latest trend graph on starts. This looks at 12-month moving totals of the civil and nonresidential building categories in Canada.

Canadian construction starts year to date, as calculated by ConstructConnect, are set out in Table 1 below. By dollar volume, the total is +5.7% versus January-to-October 2020, with residential at +22.0%; nonresidential buildings, +19.9%; and engineering, -20.2%.

Among ConstructConnect’s Top 10 project starts list for October are two that seem perfectly in sync with the times in which we’re living. For much of the past year-and-a-half, many of us have been cooped up at home as a precaution against contracting the coronavirus. Some of us have gone on fitness regimes; and we’ve all been aware, whether embracing it or not, of the extraordinarily swift breakthroughs made in vaccination protection.  

Circular economy solutions aim at establishing a sustainable model of production and consumption by optimizing resources and reducing and recovering waste (giving it a second life as a new product). Thus, by adopting these solutions, businesses can extend product lifecycles, reuse waste, and ensure a more sustainable production model.

October Handicapped by September’s Strength ConstructConnect announced today that October 2021's volume of construction starts, excluding residential work, was $28.8 billion (see shaded green box, bottom of Table 8 below), a decrease of -25.6% compared with September 2021's level of $38.7 billion (originally reported as $38.0 billion).