Construction starts, architecture billings slow in January

The value of new construction starts retreated 6 percentin January,according todata collected by McGraw-Hill Construction, New York. "The decline came as the result of a pullback for nonresidential building after a strong December, combined with a loss of momentum for residential building. ... On an unadjusted basis, total construction starts in January were ...down 4 percentfrom the same month a year ago. ...Nonresidential building in January dropped 13 percent ..., following December’s strong 27 percentgain. Health care facilities in December were lifted by the start of six massive hospital projects, and January showed this category retreating 46 percentfrom its exceptional December amount. The healthcare category in January was still 7 percentabove its monthly average for 2010 as a whole," according to a Feb. 24 Data DIGest report.

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