2025 Civil Infrastructure Construction Index: Fourth Quarter

The fourth quarter 2025 Civil Infrastructure Construction Index (CICI) closed at 50.6, down slightly from 50.8 in the third quarter, signaling a steady but slowing market environment as contractors navigate a late-cycle economy. The headline reading near neutral underscores that most firms are maintaining consistent workloads, but opportunities for acceleration are narrowing.

Key takeaways include:

• The civil infrastructure market is holding steady but slowing. Public infrastructure is sustaining activity as private work softens. 
• Backlogs remain solid yet increasingly tied to federally funded projects; competition and margin pressure are rising. 
• Cost and labor pressures persist, keeping productivity flat and profitability dependent on execution efficiency. 
• Firms are planning steady, organic growth through 2028, prioritizing capacity, ROI and strategic hiring over expansion.

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