"The sector showed signs of stabilization in April"
-CIPS Chief Executive Officer David Noble
Britain's construction output shrank less than initially was expected in April, adding to signs the economy is reviving after previous year's contraction. The Markit/CIPS Construction Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) improved to 49.4 in April, up from 47.2 in March, just slightly below the 50 threshold. In the first three months the output of construction sector was one of the weak spot of the economy, and while the economic output itself grew 0.3%, construction shrank 2.5% and knocked 0.2 percentage points off gross domestic product. Latest data is adding to signs that in the second quarter, the growth may accelerate even further.
"The sector showed signs of stabilization in April," said CIPS Chief Executive Officer David Noble. "This is a reasonable signal that things are a bit better in the industry but, that said, construction is still contracting and witnessing marginal declines in new orders."
"UK construction sector output was closer to stabilisation than at any time since October 2012," said Tim Moore, senior economist at Markit. "The overall survey findings are an early indication that construction will act as less of a drag on UK GDP over the second quarter of 2013."
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