WASHINGTON, July 1 (Xinhua) -- U.S. construction spending fell by 0.9 percent in May, the seventh decrease in the past eight months, the Commerce Department reported on Wednesday.

    The decrease was worse than analysts' expectation of 0.5 percent. The drop followed a revised 0.6 percent increase in the previous month.

    For May, U.S. construction spending was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 964.0 billion dollars, with a 11.6-percent year-on-year decrease, reflecting the steepness of recession in the country.

    Spending on private construction was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 649.2 billion dollars, 1.0 percent below the revised April estimate of 655.6 billion dollars.

    Meanwhile, construction spending by the government decreased by 0.6 percent to an annual rate of 316.9 billion dollars.

    The housing slump, which started in 2006 after five years of boom, is still underway due to tight credit markets, souring consumer confidence in the overall economy and rising unemployment.