Glenigan has released their September 2024 edition of the Construction Review, showing construction starts are down as the industry awaits the October budget
Glenigan have released their September review, detailing that the construction industry is down as it awaits the upcoming October budget.
The report states that the industry currently has a lack of clarity, and is waiting on the budget to know where they stand.
Construction starts are down as companies await the October budget
Focusing on the three months to the end of August 2024, and covering all major and underlying projects with seasonally adjusted figures, the report gives a valuable insight into the state of the industry through comparison to the previous periods.
At an average of nearly £9.8m per month, work commencing on-site dropped by 7% from the previous period, bringing it to the same as last year.
This drop is reflective of a drop in major project starts, which fell 23% on the previous period. In spite of this, it is still up by 13% compared to last year. Underlying projects are still down from the previous year, in spite of being up 7% on the last period.
Furthermore, main contract awards also dropped by 21% from the last three months, and 7% lower than 2023, and detailed planning approvals dropped a whole 37% from 2023, and 11% from the last period.
The falter will probably be temporary
Glenigan’s senior economist, Yuliana Ivanykovych, said: “The UK construction industry is showing signs of recovery, with a rise in private housing and infrastructure starts underpinning a 7% starts increase compared to the preceding three months. Confidence is returning to the private residential market, which will come as good news for investors and developers alike. However, we must be mindful of the sluggish growth of the national economy, with recent flatlining GDP figures indicating that market caution still reigns supreme.
“The recent strong spell for infrastructure may not last, especially as we’ve registered a slowdown in major projects, despite their value growing year-on-year. This may be caused by short-term sector trepidation as contractors await clarity from the Government’s Autumn Budget.”
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