Ed Sullivan, the Portland Cement Association’s (PCA) chief economist and group VP, comments on the current state of the US economy and reflects on trends for the non-residential and residential housing sectors and public construction outlook. He states that a change has already begun and that pent-up public spending demand may well start to be released going forward.
The United States’ economy has been running weak for so long that some suggest tepid economic growth is the “new norm” – and the way things will be for quite some time. The guidance from these economic soothsayers is: “Accept it and deal with it”. Such attitudes are especially prevalent in the construction industry, which has been hard hit by the recession and its frustratingly meagre economic recovery. The PCA is decidedly more optimistic. The numbers just don’t work for a pattern of sustained, tepid economic growth during the next five years, but point to larger increases in economic expansion.
