Growth in Britain's construction industry dropped to a seven-month low in November, hurt by the weakest expansion in housing activity since mid-2013, according to a survey that suggested the sector will continue to drag on the economy.
The Markit/CIPS UK Construction Purchasing Managers' Index fell to 55.3 from 58.8 in October, well below the lowest forecast in a Reuters poll of economists that pointed to a reading of 58.2.
Britain's economic recovery slowed from July through September, held back by a 2.2 percent drop in construction output. Wednesday's survey did not bode well for an improvement in the final three months of this year.
The expansion of housing activity ebbed to its lowest level since June 2013, while growth also softened across commercial construction and civil engineering.
"Overall the latest results suggest that construction companies have become a little more cautious towards year-end, especially in terms of job hiring," Markit economist Tim Moore said.
Employment among construction firms rose at the slowest pace since September 2013.
"However, a healthy flow of new tenders from public and private sector clients is expected to provide a tailwind to growth heading into 2016," Moore said.
Optimism in construction companies, while fading a little from October, remained high last month, the PMI showed.