Covid Stalls Growth

摘要

Last year's optimism about growth in the nonresidential building sector has been overwhelmed by a novel coronavirus whose persistent spread raises questions about business prospects for next year and beyond.Construction spending will be off by 8.1 percent in 2020 and 4.8 percent in 2021. That's the consensus among nine market watchers-ranging from the Associated Builders and Contractors to IHS Economics-whose projections were aggregated in the American Institute of Architecture's (AIA) mid-year Consensus Construction Forecast, released in July.With the exceptions of healthcare and public safety, every major building category is expected to lose ground this year and next.This trend would end an almost decade-long expansion in construction spending.