Housing projects saw the slowest increase
Activity in residential building was up again.
There was a further uptick in Irish construction activity last month, with the strongest increase reported in the commercial sector, according to a leading index.
Housing projects expanded for the eighth consecutive month, according to the AIB Ireland Construction Total Activity Index.
Its overall headline figure was again above the no-change mark of 50 last month. The figure of 52.4 for April was slightly down from 53.9 in March, but meant a second consecutive month of growth in Irish construction activity.
New business expanded for the third successive month. The fastest increase was in commercial activity, while civil engineering grew at the quickest pace since February 2022.
The slowest increase in activity was on housing projects, but there has been growth in the residential category for eight months running.
Employment in construction was up last month, and at a slightly stronger pace than in March, while the use of subcontractors also increased.
A bigger demand for materials meant that suppliers hiked their prices in April, with the rate of input inflation remaining above average.
The growth in purchasing activity also meant that delivery times took longer with vendors having to cope with a shortage of staff. Subcontractor rates also increased, at the fastest pace for a year.
John Fahey, senior economist with AIB, said: “The survey for April showed that the sector had a solid start to the second quarter. The headline index remained above the key 50 level, consistent with a second consecutive month of an expansion in activity.
“Firms attributed the growth in activity to an improvement in demand conditions. This was reflected in new orders expanding for a third straight month, broadly maintaining the pace of growth recorded in March. This backdrop of new projects saw firms continue to increase their staffing levels.”
Construction firms are optimistic about increasing activity levels over the next year, although some did mention that there may be a drag due to uncertainty over US trade policy.
About one in three firms surveyed were optimistic, with just over one in 10 saying they were pessimistic.
The AIB Ireland Construction PMI survey is compiled by S&P Global from responses to questionnaires sent to a panel of about 150 construction firms.
Survey responses are collected in the second half of each month, and indicate the direction of change compared to the previous month.
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