U.S. construction spending went up by 0.4 percent in November - the third straight month that showed an increase, the Associated General Contractors of America said.

Citing U.S. Census Bureau data, the association said private residential and public construction each gained 0.7 percent from October. Private nonresidential construction edged down 0.1 percent.

“It is heartening to see three increases in a row for the total,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “But most categories showed more of a seesaw pattern over the past three months, indicating that construction spending remains fragile at best.”

AGC Chief Executive Officer Stephen E. Sandherr urged the new Congress not to cut spending on infrastructure improvements.

“Deferring needed improvements to our aging transportation network will undermine business activity today while saddling future taxpayers with ever-larger maintenance and repair costs,” he said.