UK construction activity tumbles in January, hit by housebuilding

Activity among British construction firms shrank sharply in January, marking the first contraction in almost a year, according to a survey, that also showed cost pressures escalating.

The S&P Global/CIPS UK Construction Purchasing Managers’ Index fell to 48.1 last month from December’s 53.3, coming in below all forecasts in a Reuters poll of economists.

Tim Moore, economics director at S&P Global Market Intelligence, said a gloomier economic outlook, high borrowing