‘April’s survey reveals a positive start to the second quarter of 2017, with a robust upturn in civil engineering activity helping to boost the construction industry.’ — Tim Moore, Markit
British construction activity hit its four-month high last month, suggesting that the economy began a slow recovery after a sluggish start. Markit/CIPS reported on Wednesday that its Purchasing Managers’ Index for the UK construction sector came in at 53.1 in April, up from the preceding month’s 52.2, while analysts anticipated a slight decrease to 52.1 in the reported month. Activity in the civil engineering sub-sector rose at the fastest pace in more than a year and growth in the house-building sub-sector reached a four-month high. The latest PMI surveys are set to provide significant support to the UK Prime Minister Theresa May ahead of the June 8 National Election. Moreover, the PMIs are expected to please the Bank of England, which is due to meet next week. However, today’s release of the Markit Services PMI will provide a better picture of the current economic situation in the country, the services sector contributes around 70% to the nation’s GDP. Wednesday’s data showed that new orders and output both rose at the fastest pace of this year, whereas unemployment advanced at the strongest pace since May 2016.
