Australian Industry Group / HIA Performance of Construction Index hit a record high the previous month.
- Drops back this month to be still strongly in expansion
Comments from the report:
- All four components of activity expanded strongly in April 2021
- activity index jumped 5.1 points to a record high of 62.8 points. as home builders nationwide scrambled to commence new projects ahead of the HomeBuilder grant deadlines.
- The indexes for new orders, employment and supplier deliveries all eased from their record highs in March but remained elevated.
- Capacity utilisation inched up again, with many home builders reporting shortages of skilled labour, materials and inputs.
- The selling prices index hit a new record high, as more builders passed on the cost of input price increases and delivery delays to their customers.
- Looking ahead, the new orders index dropped by 7.7 points to 57 points in April, from a record high in March. The new orders indexes remain elevated in housing and engineering construction but flat (50 points) for apartments and declining in commercial construction (seasonally adjusted). New orders for houses are likely to fall from recent peaks after the HomeBuilder program ends. The recent boom in approvals will, however, keep home builders busy for many months to come.
more to come
