Contractor Confidence Hits Record Low

Expectations for sales, profit margins and staffing levels expectations fell below the threshold of 50 for the first time in the history of the  Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) Construction Confidence Index.

Sales expectations, due to COVID-19, decreased from 68.3 to 38.1 in the month of April. Meanwhile, profit margin expectations fell from 61.9 to 36.6, and the expectations for staffing levels dropped from 69 to 45.2.

“In the course of a month, construction industry confidence has shifted from ecstatic to utterly dismayed,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “If anything, confidence is likely to decline further as construction industry leaders come to terms with the full extent of the COVID-19 crisis. The finances of key sources of demand for construction services, including commercial real estate investment trusts, state and local governments, retailers and hoteliers, have been savaged by the crisis, translating into fewer funds available to finance construction.”

Read the full report here.