Construction
The construction sector has, historically, been an early indicator in the barometer of economic recovery. However, there is a concern that this indicator’s acceleration will be limited due to longer than expected development times. The sector faces many issues from the impact of the skills shortage, to the unsustainable cost of procurement for tenders - where 'suicidal' bidding is a regular occurrence that companies with permanent staff and high overheads simply cannot match. Funding also remains an issue, particularly early in the development cycle. Traditional lenders are still risk averse and developers need to look beyond loan finance to other sources of funding, and get to grips with the ever changing landscape of alternative funders and opportunities to claim tax credits and grants.