The pick-up in growth is said to be due to the increasing number of new orders and once-forgotten projects now getting the go ahead. This supported a month of expansion in the sector’s activity, which meant employment figures across the sector were also raised for the first time since June 2010.
The monthly purchasing managers' index (PMI) from Markit/CIPS came in higher than expected with a headline reading of 54, which was up slightly from last months reading of 53.3. A rise in the expansion rate is positive news as a reading above 50 signals growth across the sector.
However, the index is below the average reading experienced in the first quarter of 2011 but compared with the manufacturing sector’s PMI, which had fallen to levels last seen during the recession, the data for construction came as a relief.
After contracting in April, house building also got back onto growth mode, which helped to counterbalance the shrinking civil engineering activity. The survey also stated that, compared to the previous month, commercial building was quite stable and growing at a solid rate.
David Noble, chief executive at the Chartered Institute of Purchasing & Supply (CIPS), said: “The millstone of public spending cuts can be seen clearly in this month’s construction PMI, but aside from the unsurprising decline in civil engineering activity, the overall figures are not quite so foreboding."
He added: “It's encouraging to see a return to growth in the housing sector after April’s blip but there may be a long way to go before underlying demand for new properties, whether purchase or rental, takes the edge off market volatility.”
It is hoped that this news of growth in the construction sector will make a positive impression on the economy’s headline growth during the second quarter of this year.
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