Kerry London's latest construction update includes further information regarding the April deadline for higher-risk buildings to be registered with the Buildings Safety Regulator (BSR).
The latest Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) data highlighted increased construction business activity in February. This increase broke two months of decline, and growth was at its highest since May 2022. This was supported by a “marked rebound in commercial work and a positive contribution from civil engineering activity”, according to data compiled by S&P Global and the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply (CIPS).
Meanwhile, supplier delays were at their lowest in more than three years, while input cost inflation also eased.
Contractors partly attributed that to demand for commercial projects increasing again due to the improving near-term economic outlook. Civil engineering also returned to growth, but residential output fell for the third consecutive month.
The PMI survey also showed that around 46 per cent of respondents expect a rise in activity in the coming year, and only 13 per cent predict a drop. Construction firms also said they’d seen “signs of a recovery in client demand”, despite increasing interest rates and the risk of a recession.
Continue reading their Construction Market Update here: April Deadline for Higher-Risk Buildings.