Construction looks positive
22 February 2023
There's more positive news about the outlook for the construction industry and the companies serving it in the latest update from the Construction Leadership Council's (CLC) Product Availability working group.
The statement reports that the past month has seen more improvements in the balance of product demand and supply, with good availability for most construction products and prices no longer as volatile.
It also states that, while demand has slowed in recent months, work in every major construction sector, apart from commercial, remains above pre-pandemic levels.
So that's a very good sign.
Indeed, the slowdown has allowed brick manufacturers to rebuild stocks to their highest levels since May 2021. While there are some exceptions, manufacturers are reporting up to eight weeks’ supply for most brick types at current demand levels.
Wholesalers in the electro-technical sector report their number one operational challenge is still product availability and price issues, with longer lead times experienced for solar products including inverters, batteries and mounting systems.
In addition, problems in the supply and pricing of EV chargers linked to regulatory changes remain a major concern.
Another caveat mentioned by the working group is how the earthquake that affected Turkey and Syria could disrupt supply chains. It says that, while nothing major has been reported to date, Turkey is one of the world’s largest exporters of raw iron bars and Turkish ports are key connections for steel rebar and structural steel global trade. In addition, there may be longer term ramifications, for both materials and labour, when rebuilding begins.
Still, given that a few months ago some economic analysts were predicting recession to the extent that they were being called doom-mongers, this latest CLC data provides a positive and welcome counterbalance.
● Don’t forget to explore the Site-Eco area of the blog also for news of sustainable products and developments relevant to the world of hire.
