Construction Industry defies the odds again with good March showing

The construction industry has surprised experts again and defied the odds by posting growth for March, topping off a good quarter for the industry in 2011.

The industry posted growth of 56.4 for March on the Markit/CIPS UK Construction PMI Index, which is much better than expected. The figures are slightly down from February 2011 (56.5), which was the highest growth since July 2010.

With the market index, anything over 50 constitutes a growth, and the figures for March are positive, seeing as construction analysts were expected figures of 54.8

Markit’s Sarah Ledger, one of the authors of the index said: “UK construction companies reported a strong end to the first quarter, with activity rising at a similar pace to the eight-month high recorded in February. The data therefore add to the generally positive flow of data that have been seen since the new year.”

This is great news for the construction industry, as it has managed to grow for 3 months in a row, and a better market and performance equals more jobs for plumbing, electrical and gas contractors all over the UK.

The results may be positive, but some construction experts believe the situation is a little less rosy. David Noble, the CEO of the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply said:

“Although March saw the third monthly growth in a row of residential construction activity and staff reduction was it’s weakest in many months; other indicators showing continued volatility in house prices and poorer consumer confidence mean there is still a great deal of uncertainty.”

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