UK’s cause for concern

Mineral Products Association (MPA) results for the first quarter of 2012 indicate a substantial reduction in sales of aggregates, ready-mixed concrete and asphalt, confirming new GDP figures showing that declining construction activity has triggered the UK’s latest recession. Compared with the same period of 2011, sales volumes of crushed rock and sand and gravel aggregates declined by 13% and 12% respectively in the first three months of 2012, and sales volumes of ready-mixed concrete and asphalt fell by 9
June 25, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
UK’s quarry sector faces continuing low demand for products
5338 Mineral Products Association (MPA) results for the first quarter of 2012 indicate a substantial reduction in sales of aggregates, ready-mixed concrete and asphalt, confirming new GDP figures showing that declining construction activity has triggered the UK’s latest recession.

Compared with the same period of 2011, sales volumes of crushed rock and sand and gravel aggregates declined by 13% and 12% respectively in the first three months of 2012, and sales volumes of ready-mixed concrete and asphalt fell by 9% and 17%. The MPA has said that these products represent by far the largest flow of materials into construction markets and are used extensively throughout the construction sector. The figures follow a slightly positive overall performance in 2011 and suggest that construction activity is now in decline following some recovery from the depths of the recession in 2009.

Jerry McLaughlin, chief economist at MPA, said: “These figures represent real deliveries of materials to construction projects, not opinion survey data, and they indicate that there is a real likelihood that construction activity will fall away and constrain economic recovery as we move through 2012 and 2013.

“There has been some criticism of the ONS [3598 Office for National Statistics] data released on Wednesday (25 April) that showed a 3% first quarter decline in construction compared with the fourth quarter and lower activity than the first quarter of 2011. These official figures are provisional, but they reflect just what our industry is experiencing on the ground."

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Wacker Neuson’s record nine month revenues, despite tough economy
    November 27, 2012
    Wacker Neuson (WN) achieved record nine month revenues in the year to September 30, 2012 – while also recording a slight year-on-year rise in Q3 2012. Group revenue in the first nine months of 2012 rose 12% to €812.6 million, compared to €727.6 million in 2011. Light equipment and compact equipment were the strongest sections, reporting increases of 10% and 14% respectively. The Americas was the strongest regional revenue driver, with a rise of 22%. In Europe, revenue grew by 8%. However, WN Group revenue f
    Read More
  • Construction machine sales strong reports CECE
    March 17, 2016
    The European construction equipment market is performing relatively well in global terms. However striking regional disparities remain, according to the Annual Economic Report for 2016 from the European construction equipment manufacturing association, CECE. Data from the report shows that excluding Russia, the European market for construction machines grew by 3.5% in 2015 and it forecasts a slight increase in business for 2016.
    Read More
  • UK road safety sees good and bad
    February 5, 2016
    There is both good and bad to be seen in the latest data on UK road safety from the Department for Transport (DfT). For the year ending September 2015 there were 23,700 killed or seriously injured (KSI) casualties, a 3% decrease compared with the previous year. However road deaths increased by 3% to 1,780, compared with 1,731 for the year ending September 2014. There were also 188,830 reported road casualties of all severities, 3% lower than for the year ending September 2014. Of note is the fact that motor
    Read More
  • UK road deaths increasing for 2016
    November 3, 2016
    Worrying figures have been revealed regarding the UK’s road casualty rate for the last 12 months year ending on June 2016. There were 1,800 reported road fatalities during this period, a 2% increase from the 1,770 recorded for the previous year. However, this increase may come from a combination of factors that have come about by chance, rather than any specific change. The killed or seriously injured casualties (KSIs) increased by 3% to 24,620 compared with the year ending June 2015. This change is s
    Read More

Highlighted Content