AIA’s monthly Architecture Billings Index improved significantly in February, coming in at 53.3, 8.4 points higher than January's ABI of 44.9. This marks the ABI's first positive month since it dipped below 50 in February 2020. The ABI is a leading economic indicator of construction activity in the U.S. and reflects a nine- to 12-month lead time between architecture billings and construction spending nationally, regionally, and by project type. A score above 50 represents an increase in billings from the previous month, while a score below 50 represents a contraction.
“Hopefully, this is the start of a more sustained recovery. It is possible that scores will continue to bounce above and below 50 for the next few months, as recoveries often move in fits and starts,” said AIA chief economist Kermit Baker, Hon. AIA, in the Institute's press release. “Beyond the encouraging billing data, architecture employment added 700 new positions in January and has now regained 45% of the jobs that were lost since the beginning of the pandemic.” New project inquiries reached a 22-month high, increasing 4.4 points to 61.2 compared to 56.8 in January. The design contracts score also returned to positive territory for the first time since the pandemic began, rising 2.8 points to 51.6 compared to 48.8 in January.
The month-to-month change in scores for regional billings—which, unlike the national score, are calculated as three-month moving averages—increased in February, though three out of four regions still reported scores below the threshold of 50. Billings in the Midwest rose 7.1 points to a score of 49.3, while billings in the West increased 6.7 points to a score of 49.5. Billings in the South rose 5.0 points to a score of 52.4, and billings in the Northeast also rose 5.0 points to a score of 46.9.
Billings score increased in all four individual industry sectors with two sectors reporting scores above the threshold of 50.0. The commercial/industrial sector rose 6.2 points to a score of 50.5; the institutional sector rose 7.9 points to a score of 47.8. The multifamily residential score rose 3.9 points to a score of 48.3; the mixed practice sector rose 4.6 points to a score of 52.5. Like the regional billings scores, sector billings scores are also calculated as three-month moving averages.
