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Report from Region North

Summary

• Growth is reported by all sectors in Region North, and is expected to continue at approximately the same pace in the period ahead.
• Manufacturing reports solid growth. Growth in manufacturing for the domestic market continues, driven primarily by the building materials and engineering industries. Growth in the export industry is also solid, and shows no signs of slowing. Solid growth is also expected in manufacturing in the upcoming period.
• Building and construction report moderate growth, and expect this to continue for the next six months. Public sector developments are expected to constitute a larger share of assignments in the immediate future.
• Retail trade reports solid growth, which is expected to continue for the next six months. Growth is strongest in sales of brown and white goods, office machines and cars.
• The service sector reports continued growth, and household services report somewhat higher growth than in the previous round. Growth is strongest in auditing, hotels, travel agencies, transport, advisory services, IT services and banking.
• In this round, 66% of the contacts report that they would have some or considerable difficulty in accommodating expected or unexpected growth in demand. This is an increase on the previous round, when 56% gave this response.
• Employment has risen in manufacturing and services but remained unchanged in the other sectors during the period. For the next three months, employment growth is expected in manufacturing, while in the other industries employment is expected to remain stable. The share reporting that the labour supply is a constraint remains highest in building and construction. The supply of labour has become a greater problem in manufacturing and in the municipal and hospital sectors than in the previous round.
• Annual wage growth in 2007 is estimated at between 4.5% and 5.5%. Expectations are higher than in the same round in 2006.
• The rise in prices over the past 12 months has been strong in manufacturing and building and construction, solid in services and unchanged in retail trade. 44% of our contacts expect prices to remain stable in the next 12 months, while 31% expect them to rise at a faster pace. The share that expects a faster rise in prices is the same as in the previous reporting round. Expectations are highest in building and construction, which is the sector with the highest rise in prices for input factors.