- Tim Moore, Markit senior economist
UK construction output rebounded in June, recovering from a slowdown recorded in April and May. According to the Office for National Statistics, output inched up 0.2% in the second quarter from the previous three-month period, beating expectations for an unchanged output. The stronger June performance helped the overall second-quarter growth. The largest upward pressure on the quarterly growth came from a steep rebound in private housing projects, increasing 3.9% from a drop of 0.8% in the previous three months. This partly reflects a post-election rise in the British housing market coupled with a strong demand for new houses. Private housing output also inched up on a monthly basis in June, up 0.3% from a plunge of 2.7% a month before. Measured on a monthly basis, output in the construction sector surged 0.9% in June from a month earlier, following the 1% decline. On the year, output in June was 2.6% higher, below economists' forecasts of a 3.3% rise but still the fastest growth since March.
According to the Markit/CIPS PMI data, business activity in the UK construction unexpectedly decelerated to 57.1 last month, from a four-month peak of 58.1 in June. This was mainly due to weaker activity in the residential building sector, which was the second slowest since mid-2013. Yet, the sub-sector remained the strongest from within the overall output, according to the PMI report.
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