Construction Spending Climbs in October

Washington, DC, Dec. 3, 2012 -- Construction spending surged in October, the Commerce Department said Monday.

Spending rose 1.4% in October, well above analysts' expectations of a 0.5% gain, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $872.14 billion.

It was the biggest gain since September of 2009.

Spending on private construction rose 1.6% while spending on public projects rose 0.8%. Spending on private homebuilding rose 3.0% in the month. Multifamily construction increased 6.2% from September, while construction of single-family homes was up 3.6%.