The Census Bureau has put out its estimates of construction spending in November, and seasonally adjusted numbers show gains both from a revised October total and from November 2010. Both, however, are smaller than the bureau's margin of error for the estimates, and 2011 spending through November was down 2.5 percent.

The report estimates total construction spending for November at $807.1 million, with non-residential making up $555.7 million and residential adding $257.4 million.

The Wall Street Journal notes that home-sales and housing-starts reports will be out later this month. The data out this week, however, "paints a picture of an industry that is largely in line with trends we’ve seen of late: Things are improving, but at a snail’s pace."

The new report puts month-to-month spending up 1.2 percent and year-to-year spending up 0.5 percent. The statisticians say the error margins for those two estimates are 1.6 percentage points and 1.9 percentage points, respectively, tempering exuberance.

No one should be getting the New Year's noisemakers back out yet, it appears.