--US April construction spending +0.3%
--US April private construction spending +0.1%; public +0.9%
--US April private residential construction +0.7%
--US April private non-residential construction -0.9%
--US March construction spending revised to +1.1% from +1.3%

By Andrew Williams,
Washington, June 1 (BridgeNews) - Gains in both private residential and public construction helped boost U.S. construction spending 0.3% in April, slightly above analysts' projections of a 0.2% gain but well below the revised 1.1% increase in March. Outlays for commercial and other private non-residential building dropped after spiking in March, the Commerce Department said Friday.
* * * Construction spending, which feeds into the investment portion of GDP, was originally reported as a 1.3% increase in March.
Private construction inched up just 0.1% in April, compared with March's 1.3% increase.
Private residential construction spending rose 0.7% in April, a significant pickup from March's revised 0.1% gain.
New building in the public sector rose 0.9% in April, more than double the 0.4% gain of the prior month.
However, spending on commercial construction and other private non-residential construction showed weakness in April, dropping 0.9%. That's a sharp retreat from March's 3.3% surge.

WHAT WAS EXPECTED:
Estimates for overall April construction outlays in the BridgeNews survey ranged from a 0.5% decrease to a 1.1% increase.

OTHER DETAILS:
Construction spending totaled $855.2 billion in April at a seasonally adjusted annual rate. In inflation-adjusted 1996 dollars, which go into the GDP report, spending was up 0.1% versus March, at a seasonally adjusted $725.4 billion. End