Spending on construction in the United States dropped 1.2 percent in July, the largest monthly decline since a 1.3 percent fall in August 2001, the Commerce Department reported Friday.

Total construction spending in July was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.2 trillion dollars, or 5.1 percent above the level one year earlier, according to the report.

In July, spending on private construction was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 930.9 billion dollars, down 1.3 percent from the previous month.

Of that, private residential construction plunged 2.0 percent to an annual rate of 627.4 billion dollars, while nonresidential construction edged up 0.3 percent to 303.5 billion dollars.

Public construction spending decreased by 0.7 percent in July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 269.1 billion dollars. Educational construction rose by 1.0 percent to 69.9 billion dollars at an annual rate.

Highway construction, however, fell by 0.6 percent to an annual rate of 76.6 billion dollars.

During the first seven months of this year, construction spending rose by a 0.8 percent, a year-on-year rate of 680.4 billion dollars, the report also showed.

The big drop in construction spending in August reflected spreading weakness in the country's housing market, according to analysts.

Source: Xinhua