Construction: Order Backlogs Remain High

The business climate in construction clouded over slightly in June. The current business situation was assessed marginally more favourably than last month; however survey participants assessed their six-month business outlook somewhat more cautiously. Machinery capacity utilization rose slightly to almost 75% (seasonally and weather-adjusted), thus exceeding the value for the same period a year ago by three percentage points. Over one third of survey participants reported constraints on their construction activity last month. While the share of companies reporting a lack of orders was significantly lower than during the same period last year, negative weather influences played a far greater role. A good fifth of survey participants complained of unfavourable weather conditions (previous year's value: 2%). The scope of the average order back log in the construction sectors remained at an overall record level of 3.1 months (seasonally and weather-adjusted), putting the order buffer 0.3 months above the figure for the same period last year. According to company reports, price increases were implemented with a similar frequency as recently. These reports suggest that there should also be scope for further price increases in the months ahead. Assessments by survey participants indicate that they will increase their staff numbers in the near future.