ONS Survey: UK construction continues to tumble as manufacturing slows
Construction and manufacturing across the UK have continued to fall, according to analysis from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
The February ONS figures show that construction fell 1.6 per cent month-on-month, and was down three per cent compared to February last year.
Read more: Snow no: Construction activity shrinks in March after unusually bad weather
“Construction fell in the three months to February after an erratic couple of months, mainly due to a big decline in repair work,” said Darren Morgan, head of national accounts at the ONS. “However, this was partially offset by growth in both infrastructure and housebuilding”.
Howard Archer, chief economic advisor to the EY ITEM Club said: “Construction output may have been held back in February by the snow, but it had already been finding life challenging. Economic and Brexit related uncertainties are still clearly limiting some companies’ willingness to commit to new projects.”
Read more: London financial services pointed to for slowdown of productivity growth
Meanwhile manufacturing fell 0.2 per cent in February, with the biggest decline seen in the manufacture of machinery.
“Manufacturing continued to grow in the three months to February but at the slowest rate seen since the summer, with increases in machinery, metal products and pharmaceuticals offset by falls in electrical appliances and oil refining,” said Morgan. “This drop in refining may have contributed to the fall in fuel exports and the large rise in fuel imports also seen in the three months to February.”
Total production fell 0.1 per cent in the three months to February following an 8.6 per cent fall in decrease in mining and quarrying. The fall in mining and quarrying was due to the unexpected shutdown of the Forties Pipeline System.
Production output grew by 0.1 per cent in February, with growth in energy supply, and water and waste management partly offset by the falls in mining and quarrying.
The country’s trade deficit also widened slightly in the three months to February, according to the ONS survey, with reduced imports of machinery offsetting the rise in fuel imports.