The building industry notched up its 67th month of growth in a row in August, a survey showed today.

Construction firms saw increased growth on the back of new contracts and buoyant underlying market conditions, according to the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply's Construction Purchasing Managers Index (PMI).

The PMI showed a reading for August of 55.8 against 54.2 the previous month, with any figure above 50 representing growth.

Staffing levels in the industry expanded at a strong rate during the month as firms hired to meet rising workloads.

The figures contrast with this week's CIPS survey of the manufacturing sector, which showed a slowdown in growth as manufacturers and their customers tightened their belts to stave off the impact of rising energy costs.

Friday September 03, 2004