Enquiries - 2nd Quarter 1999 Results from the question on the expected trend in workload may have weakened slightly since last time, but those from the question about the trend in enquiries received about possible future work have mostly held up, with an overall balance of +8 compared with +6 in the first quarter. However, all the improvement is in the replies received from builders, the balance for which is up from +4 to +14, whereas specialist contractors report a dip in enquiries, their balance going from +8 three months ago to -10 this time. Replies to this question show a more pronounced 'North/South divide' than those to any other question in the survey, with those in the South, i.e. London, Eastern Counties, Southern Counties, South West and indeed South Wales all showing positive balances this time; the Northern Counties, North West, and Midlands again showing negative balances; and only Yorkshire & Trent not conforming to the general pattern, but noticeably with a positive balance much lower than for the first quarter.
Table 5 - Enquiries in the Last Quarter   1991 1999 Q2   Q1 Weighted percentages   balance Higher Same Lower Balance Northern -12 17 23 60 -43 North West -24 11 60 29 -18 Yorkshire & Trent +44 43 25 32 +11 Midlands +3 38 15 47 -9 Eastern +6 41 44 15 +26 London +7 66 23 11 +55 Southern +18 39 37 24 +15 South West -5 36 34 31 +5 South Wales -25 35 31 34 +1 All builders +4 39 36 25 +14 All specialists +8 32 26 42 -10 National +6 37 34 29 +8
Some of the swings in answers to this question are very wide. For London, for example, the balance of percentages reporting more and less enquiries than in the previous quarter has grown from +7 to +55, with two-thirds of respondents reporting and increase in enquiries, whereas in the Northern Counties there are only 17% reporting more enquiries but 60% reporting fewer, a balance of -43 compared with -12 last time. The Northern Counties 'more' percentage is actually worsted by the figures of only 11% from the North West, but that region has a much smaller percentage saying they have received fewer enquiries. Meanwhile enquiries balances are up for all sectors except social housing. For new social housing the new balance is well down at -32, whereas for RM&I work on existing social housing stock the new balance of -17 compares with -16 last time; but that small change may surely be described as a disappointment against the background of the Government's Capital Receipts Initiative, and additional cash for other public expenditure programmes, directed towards social housing RM&I.
Table 6 - Enquiries by Sector   1998 results 1999 1999 Q2   % balance, not weighted Q1 Weighted percentages   Q2 Q3 Q4 balance Higher Same Lower Balance Housing:                 Private new +6 -16 -22 -1 25 54 21 +4 Private RM&I +19 +13 -16 +5 35 45 20 +15 Social new -19 -24 -29 -15 13 42 45 -32 Social RM&I -5 -9 -23 -16 18 47 35 -17 Non-residential:                 Public new build -13 -22 -21 -24 26 41 33 -7 Public R&M -12 -20 -25 -23 25 42 33 -8 Private industrial -9 -22 -24 -20 26 41 33 -7 Private commercial -13 -17 -13 -3 28 47 25 +3 Private R&M -6 -5 -20 -12 31 45 24 +7
First posted: 21 July 1999. Last modified: 20 January 2000.