Umbrella company contractors working in the construction industry will be pleased to learn that the sector has seen the sharpest expansion of activity for four months.
As a result of this, further job creation was seen across the construction sector during February.
The Markit/CIPS UK Construction Purchasing Managers’ Index also revealed that sub-contractor usage rose at an accelerated pace last month.
According to the findings, strong demand for sub-contractors in turn helped to push up average rates charged by sub-contractors, with the latest increase the fastest since the survey began almost 18 years ago.
Commenting on the report, David Noble, Group Chief Executive Officer at the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply, commented, “The construction sector is awash with positive sentiment, rejecting wholeheartedly the downbeat end to last year, with the steepest rise in output activity for four months. The good fortune comes in threes – as respondents report a rise in staffing levels, higher levels of new orders and rising rates for sub-contractors.
"Clients are ready to spend, resulting in rising employment levels, but tempered by continuing skills shortages now seen for a number of months. Sub-contractors have been the winners; their rising rates evidence of continued demand for their capacity and the strongest since records began.”
Tim Moore, Senior Economist at Markit and author of the Markit/CIPS Construction PMI®, said, “The latest survey highlights renewed vitality within the UK construction sector, as output growth picked up further from the soft patch seen at the end of 2014. Housing, commercial and civil engineering activity all expanded at the quickest rates since last October, helped by sharp rises in new business volumes and an improving economic backdrop.”
Lisa Keeble is the Managing Director for Contractor Umbrella Ltd, one of the UK’s Most Respected Umbrella Companies and founder member of AllUmbrellaCompaniesAreEqual.
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