KEYNOTE: Will Construction Thrive or Dive Beyond 2025?
Wednesday, May 7, 8:30am – 9:30am
This session will cover the current outlook for building construction and the ways in which announced and implemented federal policy shifts may affect the construction market.
Learning Objectives:
- Trends in construction employment, nationally and by state, and implications of immigration/deportation policies
- Trends and outlook for pay for craft workers and total construction relative to the overall private sector
- Trends in materials costs and potential impact of tariffs and ocean shipping fees on costs and supply chains
- Outlook for different building categories
Kenneth D. Simonson
Chief Economist, Associated General Contractors of America
Ken Simonson has been chief economist for the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC), the leading trade association for the construction industry, since 2001. He provides insight into the economy and what it implies for construction and related industries through frequent media interviews, presentations and the Data DIGest, his weekly e-newsletter that goes to more than 20,000 subscribers.
Ken has more than 40 years of experience analyzing, advocating and communicating about economic and tax issues.
He currently serves as liaison to the Census Bureau’s Construction Data Modernization Working Group. He is a Fellow and past president of the National Association for Business Economics, and he is co-director of the Tax Economists Forum, a professional meeting group he co-founded in 1982.
Ken has a BA in economics from the University of Chicago, and an MA in economics from Northwestern University.