Thursday, December 22, 2005

2006 Poised to be the Best Year for Nonresidential Construction Since 2000

The Architecture Billings Index (ABI), a leading economic indicator of nonresidential construction activity, showed growth for the eleventh consecutive month in November, according to the monthly report from The American Institute of Architects (AIA).

Due to the approximately six month lag time between billings for architectural services and construction activity, nonresidential construction activity is expected to be a strong economic sector in much of 2006.

“It is especially noteworthy that if architecture firms report even modest billings gains in December, 2005 will be the first year since 2000 that that gains were reported every month of the year,” said AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker, PhD, Hon. AIA. “We are expecting improved business conditions for construction firms that specialize in commercial/industrial, as well as institutional projects.”

The November ABI rating of 58.4 (any score above 50 indicates an increase) represents slightly higher growth than the 57.5 score in October (November 2004 ABI was 51.6, November 2003 ABI was 48.5).

For more information: http://www.aia.org/aiarchitect/thisweek05/tw1216/tw1216otb.cfm

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