Dodge Momentum Index Dips in February

The Dodge Momentum Index continued to slide in February, dropping 1.8 percent to 148.7 (2000=100), down from the revised January reading of 151.4. The numbers reflect a slow start to 2020 after a surge in late 2019, and the current numbers are the result of declines in both components of the Momentum Index, with the commercial component down 2.1 percent and the institutional component declining by 1.2 percent.

Despite the overall decline in the Momentum Index for the last two months, it remains 11 percent higher on a year-over-year basis. The commercial component, currently sitting at 172.3, is 20 percent higher than a year ago, while the institutional component is 2 percent lower at 119.5. The overall read on these numbers indicates construction activity in 2020 should remain near its recent highs.

In February, six projects each with a value of $100 million or more entered planning. A $300 million Amazon warehouse in Colorado Springs, Colo., and a $200 million hotel in Cincinnati, Ohio, were the leading commercial projects, while institutional projects were led by the $420 million Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center in Medford, Ore., and a $150 million lab facility in New Haven, Conn.

The Momentum Index, issued by Dodge Data & Analytics, is a monthly measure of the first (or initial) report for nonresidential building projects in planning, which have been shown to lead construction spending for nonresidential buildings by a full year.