Construction spending
The Commerce Department reports its tally of October construction spending on Tuesday.
Analysts are forecasting that spending rose 0.5% in November. Construction spending in October was a seasonally adjusted annual rate of roughly $2.03 billion, up 0.4% over September. During the first ten months of this year, construction spending rose 5.6% from the same period in 2022.
Construction spending, monthly percent change, seasonally adjusted:
June: 0.5
July: 0.7
Aug.: 2.1
Sept.: 0.2
Oct.: 0.6
Nov. (est.): 0.5
Source: FactSet
November job openings
The Labor Department issues its November report on U.S. job openings on Wednesday.
Economists are forecasting a slight increase in the number of job openings in November. U.S. employers posted 8.7 million job openings in October, the fewest since March 2021. Despite October's sharp drop, job openings remain historically high. They've exceeded 8 million for 32 straight months — a threshold never reached before 2021.
Job openings, in millions, by month:
May: 9.6
June: 9.2
July: 8.9
Aug.: 9.5
Sept.: 9.4
Oct.: 8.7
Nov. (est.): 8.8
Source: FactSet
Eye on employment
The Labor Department releases its December jobs report Friday.
Economists predict that nonfarm U.S. employers added fewer jobs in December than November's 199,000 tally. The unemployment rate is expected to tick up to 3.8%. While job growth has slowed, the labor market has remained sturdy in the face of the elevated interest rates meant to cool it. The jobless rate has been below 4% for nearly two years, the longest such streak since the late 1960s.
Nonfarm payrolls, monthly change, seasonally adjusted:
July: 236,000
Aug.: 165,000
Sept.: 262,000
Oct.: 150,000
Nov.: 199,000
Dec. (est.): 150,000
Source: FactSet