UK Construction New Orders Rebound in Q1

UK construction orders rose 28.6% year-on-year in Q4 2025, easing slightly from an upwardly revised 30.5% surge in Q3, which had marked the fastest growth since Q4 2021. New housing orders weakened (12.6% vs 17.3%), with public housing accelerating (99.8% vs 72.5%) but private housing slowing sharply (2.4% vs 9.6%). Meanwhile, orders for other work stayed strong (34.4% vs 34.3% in Q3). On a quarterly basis, construction orders declined 3.8%, reversing a 14.4% jump in Q3, suggesting some loss of momentum toward the end of the year.

Construction orders in the UK surged 29.3% year-on-year in Q3 2025, rebounding sharply from a marginally revised 11.7% decline in the previous period and marking the fastest pace since Q4 2021. The strong recovery was broad-based across segments, with orders for all other work recovering (32.7% vs -7.0%) in Q2. New housing orders also strengthened (17.0% vs -24.9%), boosted by gains in both public housing (72.9% vs -9.9%) and private housing (9.2% vs -27.2%). On a quarterly basis, construction orders increased 9.8%, reversing a 6.6% decline in Q2.

Construction orders in the UK plunged 11.9% year-on-year in Q2 2025, reversing a 10.5% increase in the previous quarter. This marked the first annual contraction in construction orders since Q3 2024 and the steepest decline since Q3 2023, driven by broad-based weakness across segments. Orders for all other work fell 7.2% in Q2, a sharp reversal from a downwardly revised 18.8% surge in Q1. Meanwhile, new housing orders declined at a much faster rate, dropping 24.8% compared to a 13.1% fall in Q1, with private housing orders plunging 27.1% (vs -17.4% in Q1) and public housing orders shrinking 10.0%, reversing a 35.9% increase in the previous quarter. On a quarterly basis, construction orders fell 8.3% in Q2, following an upwardly revised 26.8% rise in Q1, which was the fastest quarterly growth since Q3 2020.