The United States construction industry added 39,000 jobs in January, including 12,700 net new nonresidential jobs, according to a new preliminary estimate released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

Construction spending rose in December 2014 to a six-year high of $982 billion as public construction for the year increased for the first time since 2009, according to an analysis of construction data by the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC).

Real gross domestic product (GDP) expanded 2.6 percent (seasonally adjusted annual rate) during the fourth quarter of 2014, following a 5 percent increase in the third quarter, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis. Investment in nonresidential structures increased 2.6 percent.

Nonresidential construction spending slipped 1 percent on a monthly basis in November, but still managed to expand 4 percent on a year-over-year basis according to the latest figures released by the U.S. Census Bureau. Spending for the month totaled $617 billion on a seasonally adjusted, annualized basis.

The Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) forecasts a steady and ongoing economic recovery for the U.S. commercial and industrial construction industries in 2015. ABC said the reasonably brisk industry recovery in 2014 should continue in 2015.

The Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) announced that its Construction Backlog Indicator (CBI) reached a new all-time high during the third quarter of 2014 at 8.8 months, eclipsing the previous all-time high of 8.5 months set in the second quarter of 2014.

The Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) announced that its Construction Confidence Index (CCI) increased across all three indices in the first half of 2014. Each index category now stands at a post-recession high, indicating that nonresidential construction’s recovery, already robust, is positioned to continue into the year ahead.