The latest Barbour ABI snapshot has arrived, analysing trends in February
The number of new orders in February has fallen from January’s levels to £7.6bn, a drop of 10%.
The analysis is relatively positive, however, as infrastructure is up by 76% month-on-month.
Infrastructure has seen several new projects
The north-west has seen the largest growth in infrastructure with £1.3bn worth of awarded contracts such as a hydrogen plant in Stanlow, the J18 project on the M60, and a £1.2bn investment in the Port Talbot Steelworks Furnace.
London’s commercial and retail sector has reached £1bn in awarded contracts, largely driven by large office developments.
Healthcare has seen a 253% increase in planning approvals, massively driven by investments into Dorset County Hospital.
The Barbour ABI February snapshot also shows the pitfalls
Residential has fallen by 45% to £1.4bn after the increase in January. Planning approvals have also fallen by 41% to £2.32bn, its lowest point in over a year.
The West Midlands have remained the poorest performing region, falling by 50% on the last month and the 2024 average. The East Midlands have conversely raised its approval value to £1.7bn after several solar and battery projects in February.
Despite the drop in planning approval value by 19% to £8.5bn, the value is still above the 2024 average.
Barbour ABI’s chief analyst, Ed Griffiths, said: “Despite a fall in February awards, the improvement in 2025 continues, being 18% up on the same period in 2024.
“Infrastructure remains a bright spot with continued government focus on renewables and clean energy pointing to continued growth in this sector. The Spring Statement will be interesting to see if any “big ticket” infrastructure schemes are announced by Rachel Reeves.
“The new planning reform bill promises to speed up the planning system and to get Britain building. However, there are many other industry blockers that need addressing, including viability and demand for new houses, skills shortages, and delays from new safety measures.
“January was the strongest month for Commercial & Retail since last July at £760m. Almost half this value came from the Manor Farm – Data Centre & Battery Energy Storage application. Hotel, Leisure & Sport saw a dip of 22% against the previous month, with the worst performing month for the sector since January 2024.
“The South East saw a positive boost to an already strong end to 2024, now sitting at £2.3bn for January applications. The majority of this value comes from large battery storage projects.”
The snapshot can be downloaded in full from the website here.
