PCA Economist Says Construction Industry Might Be Near Recovery

The construction industry is on the cusp of recovery, and Ed Sullivan, vice president and chief economist for the Portland Cement Association, sees construction spending for the year closing out at 5.5% growth. What happens after that is quite dependent on whether we hit the "fiscal cliff," he said. Sullivan says if that is averted, construction spending growth will dip slightly in 2013 to about 5% and then "jump to 9.5% in 2014." He also sees a recovery of housing, commercial and public construction by 2014 and the possibility of gains in the double digits.