The Architecture Billings Index (ABI), produced monthly by the AIA Economics and Market Research Group, indicates that following March’s plummet, billings at architecture firms sank even lower in April, as the COVID-19 pandemic continued to severely affect firm business. The ABI score declined to 29.3, a new all-time low for the index (a score below 50 indicates decreasing billings), with more than half of responding firms reporting a further decline in their firm billings from March to April. Some relief was provided to firms by loans through the Payroll Protection Program (PPP). Of the firms responding, 84 percent indicated that they have applied for a loan through the PPP, with an additional 2 percent indicating that they still plan to apply.
