There are two distinct trends emerging in the construction outlook. On one hand, there is growing optimism among contractors about key segments of the private sector market. Meanwhile, contractors are generally more pessimistic about the outlook for public sector demand. Contractors are most optimistic about the outlook for hospital and higher education construction, with 36 percent of firms predicting the amount of money spent on those projects will grow in 2013, versus 26 percent of firms predicting a decrease, for a net positive reading of 10 percent. Contractors are also relatively optimistic about.
