Key Statistics: 31st July 2012

Glenigan's weekly roundup of keys statistics for the UK construction industry and the wider economy.

Construction

• The Construction Products Association is forecasting two further years of decline in the volume of construction output, with a 4.5% drop this year followed by a 1.3% decline in 2013. Lower public sector activity is forecast to offset an increase in private housing, civil engineering and subsequently private non-residential work.
  Listen to Noble Francis of the Construction Products Association and Allan Wilen, Glenigan’s Economics Director in our webinar discussing the industry’s prospects.

UK Economy

• Provisional data released by ONS reveals that the UK remains in recession with the economy shrinking by 0.6% during the second quarter, a sharper contraction than widely anticipated. This is the third consecutive decline and leaves UK economic 0.5% down on a year ago. Across the economy:
  - Construction output fell be an estimated 5.2% during the quarter, to stand 9.7% down on a year ago.
  - Manufacturing output decline by 1.4% and was 3.1% lower than during the second quarter of 2011. 
  - Services output slipped by 0.1% during the quarter, but was still 0.7% up on a year ago. Within the service sector the finance industry and government services were the strongest performing areas.
• Real household actual income per head fell by 0.6% during the first quarter of 2012, leaving real incomes at their lowest level since the second quarter of 2005. Against this renewed squeeze on incomes real household expenditure per head fell by 0.2% in the first quarter of 2012. The household saving ratio fell by 0.5 percentage points to 6.4% during the quarter, but remains high by historic standards as households remain cautious about taking on new borrowings.
• Mortgage approvals fell back in June according to data released by the Bank of England. At 44,192 the number of loan approvals for house purchase 13% down on May. At 24,117 the number of approvals for re-mortgaging was similarly 16% down on May.