{"id":16995,"date":"2023-05-13T10:57:35","date_gmt":"2023-05-13T17:57:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wet-weather-dampens-march-construction-growth\/"},"modified":"2023-05-13T10:57:40","modified_gmt":"2023-05-13T17:57:40","slug":"wet-weather-dampens-march-construction-growth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/wet-weather-dampens-march-construction-growth\/","title":{"rendered":"Wet weather dampens March construction growth"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Output slowed to 0.2% in March, due mainly to weaker private housing and commercial building.<\/p>\n

Since the end of 2022, the private housing sector has now seen five monthly falls out of the last seven.<\/p>\n

But growth of infrastructure new work and public other new work, up 2.2% and 6.5%, respectively helped to keep the industry\u2019s head above water.<\/p>\n

According to new figures from the Office of National Statistics, the annual rate of construction inflation continued to slow falling to 8.5% in the 12 months to March from the record high of 10.4% seen in May and June last year.<\/p>\n

But new order levels for the first quarter will raise concern. These dropped 12% in the first quarter, compared with the last three months of 2022.<\/p>\n

This slide was driven mainly private commercial and private housing new orders, which fell 22% and 18%, respectively.<\/p>\n

Clive Docwra, managing director of property and construction consultancy McBains, said:<\/span> \u00a0<\/b><\/span>\u201cThe modest increase in output will provide a measure of good news for the construction industry, especially given a large proportion of work during the month would have been impacted by it being the wettest March for more than 40 years.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cMore generally, cost pressures and materials shortages seem to be stabilising, but it\u2019s too early to say whether this represents a longer-term recovery, especially given the ups and downs of the last three years.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThis is reflected by the first quarter figures of 2023 showing total orders decreased by more than 12% compared with the final quarter of 2022.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n