April was a challenging month for the UK construction sector, with the steepest decline in construction output since November last year, S&P Global UK construction data reveals.
The headline seasonally adjusted S&P Global UK Construction PMI registered 39.7 in April, down from 45.6 in March, a sharp fall in overall business activity.
Reduced output has been seen in each month since January and is now at its weakest in the last five months.
Meanwhile, civil engineering activity registered the steepest decline with an index of 35.3, followed by house building at 38.2.
Commercial work registered at 42.7, which shows some resilience compared to elsewhere in the construction sector, although the latest reduction was the fastest recorded so far in 2026.
Survey respondents widely reported subdued demand conditions and a subsequent lack of new work to replace completed projects in April.
This was signalled by the sharpest decline in total new business since November 2025.
Construction companies often noted that elevated business uncertainty due to the Middle East conflict had led to longer sales conversion times and fewer tender opportunities.
The latest survey pointed to a sharp and accelerated decline in overall purchasing activity across the construction sector, largely reflecting reduced workloads.
However, some firms commented on advanced purchasing of raw materials due to concerns about escalating costs and potential supply disruptions.
S&P Global Market Intelligence economics director Tim Moore says: “A rapid acceleration of input cost inflation was seen across the UK construction sector in April. Aside from the post-pandemic surge in input prices from early-2021 to mid-2022, the latest rise in purchasing costs was the steepest in three decades of data collection.”
Moore adds: “April data again signalled subdued underlying demand conditions, despite construction companies reporting pockets of growth in areas such as energy infrastructure work. A lack of new orders to replace completed projects contributed to the sharpest decline in business activity for five months.”
“Expectations for construction activity over the next 12 months remained positive overall during April, but confidence levels were the lowest since last November.”
Also commenting, Shawbrook managing director of development finance Terry Woodley states: “The construction industry has been dealt a difficult hand so far. Planning system delays and limited policy support to incentivise housebuilding have meant that activity has continued to decline.”
“On top of this, ongoing geopolitical uncertainty has meant additional challenges, including an increase in inflation, a rise in fuel and energy prices and disruptions to transport and shipping – further dampening activity.”
“As such, short-term predictions for the sector are muted. Developers are right to exercise caution in these circumstances and should consult a broker to ensure they can access the right funding options needed to get projects over the line this year.”
