David Cameron’s £6bn growth gamble on jobs, transport and construction July 7, 2014 David Cameron is today pledging £6bn to boost regional jobs, transport and construction in a bid to boost growth across the country in the run up to next year’s election. The biggest chunk of spending nationally under the three-year scheme will be £3bn on transport, with major links being built between northern cities. The capital [...]
Employment growth in UK’s construction sector hits all-time high July 2, 2014 The UK's construction sector is speeding up again this June, with activity growing at its fastest pace in four months. According to purchasing managers' index (PMI) data from Markit, the sector is expanding more ferociously than first estimated, with a headline reading of 62.6. Any number above 50 implies that activity in the sector is [...]
Dubai shares plunge as construction giant Arabtec hit June 24, 2014 Dubai shares have taken a dive as concerns over major construction firm Arabtec intensify, with the benchmark index heading potentially towards its biggest fall since 2008 after an intraday low of more than eight per cent. The DFM General Index was down more than eight per cent at pixel time, 1.35pm local time, with stocks [...]
Concrete data on China’s construction bubble June 16, 2014 China's growth is well documented and its property market the topic of much conjecture. There is nothing like a stark statistic to put this into context: according to Bill Gates's article in Quartz, China has used more concrete in the last three years than the US did in the 20th century. There are just 7,758,818 [...]
Construction sector growth slides to October low June 3, 2014 The construction sector is slowing down, but only by a little. A Markit survey has found that the sector is now growing as slowly as it was back in October. The headline purchasing managers' index for the sector has slid from 60.8 to 60, while analysts had expected to see a small increase to 61. [...]
Kier Group trading in line due to recovery in UK construction May 15, 2014 CONSTRUCTION and services firm Kier yesterday said its performance remains on course, thanks to a stream of new contract awards and a recovery in the UK market. The FTSE 250-listed firm said its construction division secured more than £500m of new contracts this year to date and has secured a forward order book of £2.6bn. [...]
UBM builds up events with deal for Mexican construction show May 12, 2014 MARKETING company UBM yesterday added to its Mexican business by acquiring Expo CIHAC from the Mexican construction trade association for an undisclosed sum. Expo CIHAC attracts 30,000 attendees and generates £4m a year in revenues, UBM said yesterday. The FTSE 250 firm, which now hosts almost half of its events in emerging markets, has in [...]
New homes deliver construction firms with 12 months of growth May 11, 2014 NEW HOUSING demand helped the construction sector record 12 months of consecutive growth for the first time in six years at the start of 2014, a survey suggests. Construction firms across the sector reported a rise in activity between January and March, adding to the previous three quarters of upbeat figures from building firms. Around [...]
Will Balfour Beatty’s UK construction head replace McNaughton as CEO? May 6, 2014 Amid the doom and gloom of infrastructure firm Balfour Beatty’s third profit warning in 18 months, chief executive Andrew McNaughton stepped down “with immediate effect” today. It is understood that McNaughton was pushed out, rather than bowed out, as the FTSE 250 firm looks to turn around its flailing balance sheet. Shares plunged over 17 [...]
Strange things are happening to the UK’s construction sector May 6, 2014 Construction is still hollowed out from the financial crisis, and has suffered two major recessions – so why are builders finding hiring so difficult? Despite solid growth in the last 12 months, the sector is still more than 10 per cent shy of its previous output peak. The recession was deeper than for [...]