UK construction firms experience slowdown in growth in March.
The UK construction purchasing-managers’ index from Markit and the Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply (CIPS) slipped to a seasonally adjusted 52.2 in March from 52.5 in February and against market consensus for a reading of 52.4 the survey revealed on Tuesday 4th April.
March data revealed that a slowdown in growth was seen across the UK construction sector, led by a weaker rise in residential building activity. Only a modest increase in new work contributed to employment levels slowing to a three-month low but remaining in growth mode. The latest survey also found that construction companies remain relatively upbeat about their near-term growth prospects, partly reflecting a stabilisation of client confidence from the post-referendum lows seen in 2016. Markit found optimism regarding year-ahead business activity picked up in March to its second-highest since December 2015.
Senior IHS Markit economist Tim Moore said: “UK construction firms experienced a growth slowdown in March, with the loss of momentum centred on house building. A weaker trend for residential work has been reported throughout 2017so far, which provides an indication that the cooling UK housing market has started to act as a drag on the construction sector”.
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