There have been mixed reports with regards to the current state of the construction sector today. Whilst one report details that for the 22nd consecutive month, the construction sector has seen a fall in activity; another report has revealed demand for permanent and temporary construction workers has increased.
The decline in activity relates to the commercial and civil engineering sectors. David Noble, Chief Executive of the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply said that it was disappointing that December saw another fall in activity, and whilst other parts of the economy are beginning to recover, he thought the construction sector appeared unable to escape the ‘shackles of the recession’.
On a positive note, whilst activity in the construction market has said to decline, house building has increased and is rising at its fastest pace since the credit crunch which began in August, 2007. The KPMG and Markit economics report on jobs index today also revealed that the month of December saw demand for contractors within the construction sector significantly increase. This is the third highest increase in demand of any industry in the UK.
The previous December (2008) demand for contractors in the construction sector was the lowest of all industries with a score of 30.2. Today the figure released for December, 2009 was 57.1.
