The non-profit industry group, which is based here, expects construction totals to grow in both the private and public sectors, reaching a total of $69.8 billion in 2004. This follows an anticipated 3.7% increase in total construction for 2003 and an increase of nearly 1.9% in 2002. The CIRB notes that California's construction volume for the first 10 months of 2003 is up 7.6% from the corresponding period last year. A significant part of this year's improved performance was an 8.8% leap in construction in October, which reversed four consecutive monthly declines since June.

Private building, which includes residential and nonresidential building, totals $44.5 billion in the first 10 months of 2003, up 10.1% from the same period last year. Public works construction, which includes both government-owned buildings and heavy (civil works) construction, totals $14.2 billion for the first 10 months, up 0.3%. Ben Bartolotto, director of the 30-year-old research board, believes good news should continue into next year for private and public construction. "The strength of the economy today is better than expected," Bartolotto says.

Private construction, led primarily by increases in home building, is forecast to increase by 4.2% in 2004 to $53.8 billion. Commercial building has been on the decline since 2000, but Bartolotto feels that commercial building has bottomed out and he is forecasting this sector to improve in 2004 with a 4.3% increase to $14.7 billion.

Although fiscal constraints at all levels of government threaten public works construction in 2004 due to the state's budget deficit, Bartolotto expects slight improvement overall in construction with modest gains in private building continuing to offset a 2% net decline in the public works sectors.

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