The development business faces a shifting panorama because the Trump administration units about reshaping among the nation’s most impactful federal insurance policies.
With modifications in infrastructure priorities, regulatory rollbacks and financial shifts, contractors and builders are bracing for each new alternatives and potential setbacks. Some sectors, equivalent to information facilities and infrastructure, are set for speedy progress, whereas clear power initiatives and high-speed rail might see federal assist dwindle. Different forms of initiatives have a blended or unsure outlook below the brand new administration.
Under, Development Dive appears on the building sectors poised to achieve momentum below President Donald Trump’s second time period:
Knowledge facilities
Knowledge middle building progress ought to surge to new heights this 12 months after a powerful tempo of exercise in 2024, in response to the Related Normal Contractors of America’s annual outlook survey.
About 42% of contractors surveyed by AGC, up from 20% final 12 months, count on the worth of initiatives within the sector to be greater in 2025 than 2024. JP Morgan anticipates spending on information facilities to enhance general U.S. GDP by about 10 to twenty foundation factors from 2025 to 2026, in response to Reuters.
That push is being fueled by huge tech firms. For instance, a brand new three way partnership amongst tech giants OpenAI, Softbank and Oracle, dubbed Stargate, plans to take a position $100 billion in synthetic intelligence infrastructure, with the potential to scale as much as $500 billion by 2028. Trump introduced the initiative on the White Home, calling it important to holding the U.S. forward in AI innovation. He pledged to fast-track allowing and assist power initiatives to energy the information middle builds.
“[Data center construction] has emerged as one of many fastest-growing building markets,” stated Brian Kassalen, principal and building business chief at Chicago-based Baker Tilly, an advisory, tax and assurance agency. “Even earlier than the announcement of Mission Stargate, information middle building was a prime building market with vital progress forecasted in 2025 and past.”
Earlier this 12 months, Chicago-based Clayco unveiled a brand new enterprise unit to speed up its information middle building efforts. CEO Anthony Johnson expects the agency’s income from information middle building alone to achieve over $4.6 billion by 2026, up from $3.6 billion in income in 2024.
“The hyperscale information middle market is projected to develop 10% to twenty% yearly within the subsequent 5 years,” stated Johnson. “… There’s nonetheless an amazing quantity of alternative for us to construct each by way of initiatives and as a corporation on this sector.”
Power initiatives to energy AI
That momentum within the information middle sector will propel exercise within the energy sector as properly, stated Kassalen.
U.S. information middle power consumption will possible triple within the subsequent three years and will eat as a lot as 12% of nationwide power utilization, in response to the Division of Power. That leaves ample room for future energy initiatives, stated Kassalen.
“This surge in power demand is fueled by traits such because the explosive progress of AI, the growth of cloud computing and ongoing developments in digital transformation,” stated Kassalen. “These developments are anticipated to maintain and speed up demand for brand new information facilities, creating alternatives for energy building initiatives.”
However these forecasts might be overstated. China-based DeepSeek claims to have developed a extra cost-efficient AI mannequin, which has led some traders to query whether or not these large information facilities will stay obligatory.
Blackstone COO Jon Grey acknowledged issues from traders throughout a latest earnings name, however maintained broader AI adoption ought to nonetheless maintain demand for information middle building.
“We’ve clearly been spending plenty of time the final week trying on the impression of DeepSeek,” stated Grey through the earnings name. “We nonetheless suppose there’s a significant want for bodily infrastructure, information facilities and energy.”
About 32% of contractors surveyed by AGC, up from 25% final 12 months, count on the worth of energy building initiatives to be greater in 2025 than 2024. That’s buoyed by Trump’s plans to assist home oil and pure fuel manufacturing, stated Kassalen. Tech giants are additionally more and more turning to nuclear energy to satisfy these rising power calls for, in response to CBRE, a Dallas-based business actual property companies agency.
Kassalen added Trump’s coverage route suggests there could also be a rollback of many restrictions on drilling, for each onshore and offshore initiatives. Trump issued directives to hurry up allowing for power infrastructure initiatives, utilizing emergency laws below legal guidelines just like the Clear Water Act to make sure sooner approvals for oil, fuel, nuclear and coal developments.
These will result in a larger demand for contractors that may carry out this sort of work, Kassalen stated.
“From a building standpoint, the push for increasing nuclear and fossil gasoline initiatives might considerably profit the business. Elevated power growth would drive demand for associated infrastructure, equivalent to new roads, pipelines, processing services and different assist methods,” stated Kassalen. “This prioritization of fossil fuels, paired with potential assist for nuclear power, positions the development sector to play a key position in supporting the nation’s power targets.”
Manufacturing initiatives
The onshoring of U.S. manufacturing services, a key focus of the Biden administration, seems more likely to flourish below the Trump administration as properly, stated AGC CEO Jeffrey Shoaf through the commerce affiliation’s building outlook webinar.
Over the previous a number of years, efforts to revive American manufacturing spurred over $988 billion in non-public firm funding after many years of offshoring. These initiatives, scattered throughout the nation, embrace multibillion-dollar biotechnology services, chip fabrication crops and electrical car battery factories.
Trump’s America First plan consists of enhanced tax breaks and streamlined allowing processes for manufacturing crops, in response to The Bonadio Group, a Rochester, New York-based accounting and consulting agency. These measures intention to cut back limitations, enhance home manufacturing and place the U.S. as a pacesetter within the manufacturing sector.
Contractors stay optimistic momentum within the area will proceed, stated Ken Simonson, AGC chief economist, through the AGC webinar. About 25% of contractors surveyed by AGC, up from 15% final 12 months, count on the worth of producing building initiatives to be greater in 2025 than 2024.
Roads and bridges
With Trump taking workplace, count on “a larger concentrate on extra conventional infrastructure like roads and bridges,” in response to Alex Etchen, vp of presidency relations with Related Normal Contractors of America.
With the Infrastructure Funding and Jobs Act expiring in September 2026, the Trump administration could have the chance to craft its personal floor transportation reauthorization invoice, shaping transportation coverage for years to come back, consultants at Miami-based legislation agency Holland & Knight wrote in a quick. That possible means extra emphasis on highways.
“Though some GOP lawmakers are supportive of high-speed rail, interstate freeway growth, which congressional Republicans view as extra helpful to rural Individuals, will undoubtedly take priority,” in response to the transient.
