UK’s wet weather slows house building but means more maintenance work
The pace of activity in the UK construction sector eased back a touch in February but output still increased for the tenth month in a row, with the purchasing managers’ index for the month at 62.6.
Analysts had been expected a fall to 63.0 from 64.6 – January’s very strong reading, which was a 77-month high.
Job creation hit a three-month high last month, and civil engineering overtook housing as the strongest area for growth. House building, said Markit, suffered from the recent wet weather which, in turn, upped civil engineering work.
Tim Moore, senior economist at Markit, said:
Construction output growth succumbed somewhat to the recent wet weather, with temporary disruptions from heavy rainfall most acute for house building activity in February. Consequently, residential work ceded its place as the best performing category to civil engineering, as construction work related to flood relief and infrastructure maintenance rose sharply over the month.
While some froth has come off overall construction growth in February, the latest data showed that job creation picked up to a pace rarely seen since the summer of 2007. Moreover, in the latest survey there were six construction companies forecasting higher activity over the year ahead for every one anticipating a reduction.