US Residential Construction Spending Sees 6th Straight Month of Decline

by confoundedinterest

Today is a double whammy for bad news for the US economy.

First, The Census Bureau monthly construction spending report reveals that highway and street spending rose 11.7% in January. The biggest decline was communication spending.

BUT, US residential construction spending slumped for the 6th straight month. It is beginning to resemble “The Matterhorn” plunge of the 2000s.

The second whammy is the FDIC report  revealing that US banks reported $251 billion of “unrealized losses” on securities investments in 2018, the most since 2008.

For a less grim chart from The Federal Reserve (and a different metric), here is US Commercial Bank Liabilities Net Unrealized Gains (Losses) Available for Sale.

Double whammy!