"Bad weather is likely to have played a role in the further weakening of the sector that has been evident so far this year"
- Chris Williamson, chief economist at Markit
Output in the U.K. construction sector fell sharply in January, adding to fears the economy may slip back into recession. The report by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed that Britain's construction output for the month was down 7.9% compared with the previous month. At the same time the level of output was more than 10% lower than a year earlier, totalling £6.7 billion ($10bn). Despite the fact that construction sector makes up less than 7% of Britain's economy, weak activity was one of the main drags on growth last year, pushing the country back into recession. Construction sector was hit by cuts in government spending and a shortage of finance for new projects, emphasising fears that the economy will not be able to start gaining pace in the beginning of 2013.
"Bad weather is likely to have played a role in the further weakening of the sector that has been evident so far this year," Chris Williamson, chief economist at Markit said. "But [the data] raises the likelihood of the sector having acted as drag on the economy in the first quarter."
"The marked fall in construction output reflected a return to declining levels of commercial building work and a sharp decrease in civil engineering activity," CIPS chief executive David Noble said.
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