AIA Architecture Billings Index Rose to 55.6 in March

Washington, DC, April 21, 2021-The American Institute of Architects’ (AIA) Architecture Billings Index (ABI) score for March rose to 55.6 compared to 53.3 in February (any score above 50 indicates an increase in billings). Scores for both new projects inquiries and new design contracts strengthened to 66.9 and 55.7 respectively. March also marked the first time in three years all building sectors and regions posted positive scores.

“As business activity at architecture firms moves sharply toward recovery, it is very encouraging to simultaneously see such positive indicators of future project work increasing in the pipeline,” said AIA chief economist, Kermit Baker, Hon. AIA, PhD. “The activity architecture firms are seeing is a positive bellwether not only for the construction outlook, but also for the larger economy.”

Regional averages were as follows: Midwest (56.5); South (55.8); West (52.8); Northeast (50.8).

The sector index breakdown was commercial/industrial (57.0); mixed practice (54.9); institutional (54.4) and multi-family residential (52.6).

The project inquiries index was 66.9, and the design contracts index was 55.7.

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