Construction Workloads Boosted in First Quarter by Public Housing Activity
A net balance of 10% of surveyors in Wales reported a rise in overall construction activity, up from 3% seen in the final quarter of 2024. Public housing continues to see the highest workloads balance, with a net balance of 50% reporting an increase, the highest this balance has been in three years.
Workloads in the private industrial subsector fell flat, and the net balances of the rest of the subsectors were all in negative territory; private housing (-14%), private commercial (-26%), infrastructure (-7%) and other public works (-5%).
Surveyors in Wales remain optimistic about future workloads, with a net balance of 20% of respondents expecting an increase over the next year, up from 16% in the survey previous, and above the UK average of 17%.
In saying this, profit margins are still expected to fall over the next 12-months. A net balance of -7% of surveyors in Wales anticipate that profit margins will decline.
Welsh surveyors continue to report shortages in skilled workers. 60% report a shortage in quantity surveyors, down from 65% in Q4 2024, and 48% note a shortfall in other construction professionals compared to the 50% reported in the previous survey. 47% report a deficit in bricklayers which is down from 66% that was reported in the final quarter of 2024.
Survey respondent John Pugh, chartered building surveyor and conservation consultant in Ruthin noted that the sector appears to be very buoyant.
Jodie O'Connor of Penfro Consultancy Limited in Pembroke Dock said:
'Improved access and additional investment in training and retaining professionals across the West Wales region is essential to support the growth and development of sustainable energy projects and related infrastructure.'
Commenting on the UK picture, RICS Chief Economist, Simon Rubinsohn, said:
'Construction activity was largely flat over the quarter with respondents expressing a little more caution in the face of the heightened level uncertainty both at a global and domestic level. In particular, concerns about the implementation of tariffs and what this might mean for costs and economic activity as well as the potential impact of the uplift in employer NI contributions are highlighted in the feedback.
'Significantly, aside from financial issues the most cited obstacle to activity referenced in the survey is planning and regulation which chimes neatly with the government's agenda. Addressing this issue is critical if the ambitions around housing and infrastructure are to be met.
'That said, for now the forward-looking metrics point to a relatively modest uplift in construction workloads over the next twelve months with profitability in the sector remaining under pressure.'
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