Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC)’s Construction Backlog Indicator fell to 8.8 months in June, according to an ABC member survey conducted June 22 to July 8. The reading is down 0.3 months from May but up 0.1 months from June 2025.
Only the Middle States region experienced backlog growth on a monthly basis in June. In the Northeast region, backlog contracted sharply, down by more than a month compared to the same time last year.
“While backlog declined in June, it’s still longer than any point from September 2023 to April 2026,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “This strength is the result of continued booming data center construction.
“The 13% of ABC members under contract to work on data centers have significantly higher backlog (11.0 months) than the 87% that are not (8.5 months). This trend is a noticeable headwind for smaller contractors—just 8% of contractors with less than $100 million in annual revenues have data center work under contract, well below the 41% share of contractors with greater than $100 million in annual revenues.”
ABC’s Construction Confidence Index readings for sales and staffing levels increased in June, while the reading for profit margins inched lower. Still, the readings for all three components remain above the threshold of 50, indicating expectations for growth over the next six months.
“The effect of rising input prices may be weighing on contractor profitability,” said Basu. “Contractor confidence regarding profit margins fell to a seven-month low in June, though expectations remain above the prevailing level from the second half of 2025.”
Click here to view the full Construction Backlog Indicator and Construction Confidence Index data series.
About Associated Builders and Contractors
Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) is a national construction industry trade association established in 1950 with 67 chapters and 24,000 members. Founded on the merit shop philosophy, ABC helps members offer a robust employee value proposition, develop people, win work, and deliver that work safely, ethically and profitably for the betterment of the communities in which ABC and its members work.
’s Construction Backlog Indicator fell to 8.8 months in June, with only the Middle States region experiencing growth on a monthly basis.){kind=link}