Construction industry strapped despite adding 2,600 jobs in June

Construction outfits in Minnesota added 2,600 jobs in June, continuing a solid run during the summer months that has offset a slight lag earlier in the year.

The additions extend growth in the sector going back to April, according to seasonally adjusted data released Thursday by Minnesota’s Department of Employment and Economic Development. June’s gains pushed total construction jobs to about 110,000 – the most since July 2008.

Read more in Finance & Commerce.

Rising apartment rents aren’t turning renters into homeowners

Are U.S. adults buying more homes now that apartment rents are on the rise? It doesn’t look like it. According to the latest research from Freddie Mac, most renters are staying with apartment living even as rents in cities across the country continue to creep higher.

Read the REJ Blog.

Home permits jump in February, but builders are concerned

New home permits in the Twin Cities jumped 40 percent in February from the same month last year, but the Builders Association of the Twin Cites (BATC) isn't thrilled. The BATC said the increase from 248 home permits last February to 347 this month was caused by builders rushing to put up homes before new building codes kicked in.

Read more in Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal.

BNSF to boost spending on upgrades in Minnesota

BNSF Railway Co. will spend $326 million on Minnesota railroad improvements in 2015, nearly triple the amount spent last year as the company addresses historic increases in freight and tries to speed up service that was crippled last year, officials announced Thursday.

Read more in the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

Frac sand boom remains relatively untouched by oil price drop

Wisconsin’s booming frac sand mines have shown few signs of slowing down, even as oil prices remain at their lowest in months. The mines, located primarily in western and northwestern Wisconsin, provide sand necessary in hydraulic fracturing sites across the country.

Read more in the Badger Herald (Wisc.).

River infrastructure, a story too big to ignore

UMWA members and others who understand the vital economic role of river infrastructure have long hoped that it will not take a lengthy shutdown on the Mississippi to finally bring focused national attention to its acute needs. And there is evidence that the condition of the system’s locks and dams has become a story too big to ignore.

Read more in Waterways, a publication of the Upper Mississippi Waterway Association.

Dayton holds summit to address railroad delays

DFL Gov. Mark Dayton emerged fro a closed-door meeting with railroad officials today and said that track upgrades and more oil pipelines are needed to unclog rail shipments in Minnesota.

Read more at Minnesota Public Radio.

Minnesota's economic expansion expected to continue

July marked the big 2-0 for Minnesota - as in the 20th straight month supply managers in the state predicted an expanding economy.

Read more in Finance & Commerce.

Rochester construction off to strong start

Construction spending in Rochester for the first half of the year has increased strongly from the same period last year. There was $169.5 million in construction, up from $125.3 million in the first six months of 2013.

Read more in the Rochester Post-Bulletin.

Minnesota's construction industry adds 2,700 jobs in March

Unusually severe March weather didn't stop Minnesota's construction industry from rallying and expanding the job gains during the past year, according to the Department of Employment and Economic Development data released Thursday.

Read more in Finance & Commerce.

Construction remains Minnesota's fastest growing jobs sector

Construction employment weathered persistent winter chills in February to hold on to year-over-year gains. The industry added 6,766 jobs between February 2013 and February 2014, an increase of 8.5 percent, according to the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development data released Thursday.

Read more in Finance & Commerce.

A big economic engine: Fracking and other energy needs driving region’s busy train traffic

The sound of idling train engines became common this winter for some in Caledonia near Union Pacific’s railroad tracks between Highway 38 and Nicholson Road. Residents voiced their concerns to the Caledonia Village Board earlier this month and learned that there was little village officials or even state officials could do about it.

Read more in the Racine (Wisc.) Journal Times.

Too few jobs? Soon, there may be too many

Officials have spent the past several years fretting about high unemployment, but Minnesota needs to start preparing for the fast-approaching time when it will have more jobs than workers, according to forecasts from the state demographer and state economist.

Read more in Finance & Commerce.

Contractor Confidence Rises in Early 2014

Gains in the Associated Builders and Contractors' (ABC) Construction Confidence index (CCI) indicate that contractor confidence expanded as 2013 wound to a close, particularly with respect to near-term industry profit margins and staffing levels.

Read more at For Construction Pros.

Growth spurt for aggregates

The Freedonia Group recently reported some very good news, forecasting worldwide sales of construction aggregates to increase 5.8 percent per year to 53.2 billion metric tons by 2017. And the news is good for North America as well, with sales expected to rise over the next five years.

Read more in Pit & Quarry.

Construction starts climbed 6 percent in 2013

New construction starts in December grew five percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $554.5 billion, according to McGraw Hill Construction, a division of McGraw Hill Financial. Although both nonresidential building and housing settled back during the final month of 2013, McGraw Hill Construction says the non building construction sector finished the year strong.

Read more in Pit & Quarry.

Minnesota unemployment rate falls to six-year low

The construction industry posted slight job gains in October, contributing to the lowest overall monthly unemployment rate for Minnesota since December 2007. The state's unemployment rate fell to 4.8 percent for the month, down from 5.6 percent a year ago, . . . .

Near double-digit growth forecast for construction

McGraw Hill Construction predicts total U.S. construction starts for 2014 to rise 9 percent to $555.3 billion.

Read more at Pit & Quarry.

Positive future means solid present for Saint Paul office market

The website of the future Lowertown Ballpark in the Lowertown neighborhood of Saint Paul, Minn., features a countdown clock ticking dow the time remaining before the park's first opening day.

Read more in the REJblog.

Twin Cities exurbs see a return of new home construction

Rising land prices in the most coveted spots of the Twin Cities are pushing developers to the fringes of the metro area, where they're reviving some subdivisions halted during the recession.

Read more in the Minneapolis Star Tribune.