British construction output drops 0.1% in August

Britain's seasonally adjusted volume of monthly construction output fell 0.1 percent in August compared with July, according to official figures released on Friday. The decrease was in sharp contrast with the 2.8-percent growth in the previous month. This slight drop was due to decreases in both new work and repair and maintenance, which dropped 0.1 percent and 0.2 percent respectively, according to figures of the Office for National Statistics (ONS). However, construction output in August surged 4.0 percent compared with the same month of last year, mainly due to a 5.5-percent increase in new work, said the ONS. "Construction output shows year on year growth for three consecutive months for the first time since May 2011 with the main contribution to this growth coming from the new housing work," it said. The ONS figures on construction sector are in keeping with the prediction on construction sector made by the latest quarterly report by the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC). The report said construction remains a weak and volatile sector in the British economy, with a full-year decline of 8.2 percent in 2012. It expected modest positive quarterly growth in construction output from first quarter 2013 onwards, with the construction output expected to fall by a further 0.6 percent in 2013, followed by positive but weak growth of 1.0 percent in 2014 and 1.1 percent in 2015. BCC called on the government to adopt additional measures aimed at boosting house building and infrastructure spending in a bid to boost the construction sector, which accounts for about 6.3 percent of the country's economy.