UK construction sector expansion slowed in March to its joint-weakest pace since the current period of expansion began last September as growth of housebuilding activity eased, writes Ian McConnell.
The Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply’s latest survey also shows a slowdown in employment growth in the sector. And it signals continuing sharp rises in UK construction companies’ costs, driven by higher prices for imported materials amid sterling’s weakness in the wake of the Brexit vote and by global commodity price increases.
CIPS’s purchasing managers’ index for the UK construction sector, which measures activity, dipped from 52.5 in February to 52.2 last month to signal slower growth. However, the index remained comfortably above the level of 50 deemed to separate expansion from contraction.
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