BUSINESS MEMO: CONSTRUCTION ABILITY

Construction activity in Missouri was down 39 percent in November and 7 percent for the first 11 months of the year.

The F.W. Dodge Division of McGraw-Hill, an authority on the construction market, reported construction for November at $412,020,000, down from the $673,447,000 the previous November.

The state's November nonresidential construction, which includes commercial, manufacturing and other buildings not designed for shelter, was $146,489,000, down from the $377,936,000 figures of November 1995.

Residential construction was $168,574,000, down 23 percent from the $218,475,000 in November 1995.

Nonbuilding construction, which includes streets, highways, bridges, river and harbor developments, airports and a few other projects, was $96,957,000 for November, up 26 percent from the $77,036,000 during November 1995.

Construction for the first 11 months was down 7 percent at $5.7 billion, compared to $6.1 billion a year ago.

Nonresidential construction through November was $2.1 billion, down 21 percent from the $2.6 billion for the first 11 months of 1995; residential construction was reported at $2.5 billion, up 11 percent from the $2.2 billion of 1995; nonbuilding was reported at $1.1 billion, down 9 percent from the $1.2 billion of 1994.