Bessent says construction is laying the groundwork for a U.S. manufacturing resurgence. Labor Department data show factory employment rose 58,000 from December 2025 to August 2026, while July manufacturing-construction spending was 32% below its September 2024 peak.
The 58,000-job increase starts from December 2025, the bottom of a two-year slide; factory employment remained 35,000 below January 2025, according to the article’s analysis of BLS data. Of 150,000 added jobs in goods-producing industries, 87,000 were in construction and 58,000 in manufacturing; mining and logging accounted for the rest.
Manufacturing construction spending fell from a $250.2 billion annual rate in September 2024 to $169.8 billion in July 2026. Construction economist Ken Simonson said data centers, power and highway projects were propping up broader construction spending; data-center construction alone topped a $75 billion annual pace in July, nearly 60% above a year earlier. The ISM manufacturing employment index eased to 51.2 in August from 52.8 in July, while its broader purchasing managers’ index was 54.6; readings above 50 indicate expansion.
