More Comment – Page 492
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Comment
NSCC survey of specialists highlights strategic industry problems
I was passed a draft copy of the latest state of trade survey undertaken by the specialist contractors' body NSCC. It covers the first quarter of this year and tells pretty much the story you'd expect - orders and inquiries down and firms working at lower and lower capacity.It is, ...
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Budget 2009: Draw your own conclusions, if you can
"I can't quite decide whether it was smoke or mirrors," said KBC Peel Hunt analyst Robin Hardy in summing up yesterday's Budget.Most observers said the Chancellor's economic growth forecasts were chipper to say the least and when asked to pick out the positives, there was generally an uneasy silence at ...
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Welcome to Building's expert economists
Welcome to Buildings new economic panel. We have assembled a panel of experts to help make sense of these fast moving and uncertain economic times. They will regularly comment on economic developments as they unfold and give an insight into what these might mean whether it's and event as big ...
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Budget 2009: initial thoughts
Budget day as ever was interesting and obviously, the devil is in the detail, especially when it is bad news. However, the Chancellor's speech and the Budget document provide us with some initial thoughts.The macro figures are as bad as expected and potentially worse; £175bn public borrowing in 2009/10 and ...
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Brace for public investment cuts
Three things stood out in yesterday's Budget: First, the shocking state of UK public finances, second, the Chancellor's gambling on a very rapid rebound of the economy to make his numbers add up and third, that the construction industry will almost desperately hope for private sector demand to return by ...
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What's in the budget for construction?
Snap analysis immediately after the event tends to be prone to knee-jerk reaction, but the thing that immediately springs to mind about this budget is the optimism regarding GDP growth in 2010 in 2011. While I wouldn't neccessarily argue with a 3.5% decline for this year, 1.25% growth for 2010 ...
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Home sales perk up in March
Another little ray of good news for estate agents and house builders came from the latest figures from HM Revenue & Customs for property transactions.They do provide a hint of a glimmer of hope that the housing market may be experiencing some revival, with the highest level of monthly sales ...
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Chancellor provides optimism in the gloom...and that's what's worrying
The direct measures aimed at construction-related activities and businesses in the 2009 Budget will be welcomed in some quarters, mainly among the house builders.Though I am not so sure I would go with the instant view from the surveyors' body RICS that: "Measures announced by the Chancellor will help move ...
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Budget reaction: The impact on built assets
The Budget has placed built assets at the heart of nurturing economic recovery, achieving efficiency savings and delivering better public service outcomes. The Chancellor is now forecasting a budget deficit of £175 billion this year and £173 billion in 2010/11, peaking at 79% of GDP in 2013/14. He is also ...
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Construction job vacancies evaporate as recession bites
The latest batch of employment figures provides little comfort to the thousands of construction workers who are now looking for jobs, as vacancies in the industry have plunged deeper.The figures show that in the three months to March this year there were 12,000 recorded vacancies for jobs in construction. This ...
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Local builders set to shed more jobs as the recession deepens
The latest survey of local builders by the FMB suggests that more jobs will shed over coming months with a majority of a third of firms expecting to cut jobs over the coming six months.It has to be said that the survey for the first quarter of this year is ...
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Inflation down but far from out, despite cheaper cucumbers
For the first time in a year the annual rate of inflation measured on the CPI index dropped below 3%, dropping from 3.2% to 2.9%.The main contributor to the fall in inflation was lower energy costs, which contributed to a drop in the rate of inflation for housing and household ...
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Recovery soon for construction?
The torrent of economic good news gushing from economists and think tanks is almost overwhelming.Hell's teeth it is a boost to confidence. But does this mean that the recovery is in sight for construction?David Miles, the new member of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee recently told the Western ...
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Home sellers push up asking prices
The latest figures from the property website Rightmove suggest that sellers are feeling a bit more confident and are pushing up their asking prices.Rightmove puts the 1.8% rise in asking prices in April on top of the 0.9% rise in March down to the normal spring bounce. But the chances ...
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CommentPuzzling arithmetic: Joint liability
If two parties are jointly responsible for damage, who pays, and how much? The answer to this question is often surprising (and dismaying) for one of the parties …
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CommentThe special ones
We know designers are a great bunch because they keep telling us so. In the first of seven articles about the seven deadly sins of architecture
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CommentWatch out for the tentacles: Defective Premises Act
Are you familiar with the Defective Premises Act? You’re not? Oh dear … well before you do any work on a house, you really ought to read the following horror story
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CommentOutrageous fortune
To make it as an architect you have to be prepared to endure long periods of evil luck as you wait for the phone call that will turn everything around …
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How to recognise a consultant
A basic point to specify when appointing a consultant is what they will actually be doing. Here’s a handy guide to the behaviour of the most common species
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CommentA quick pull of the plug: Terminating a contract
State your case If you intend to terminate, it’s no good hanging around for ages before you break the news, or you may find the decision is no longer yours