RICS published BCIS five-year civil engineering forecast

Article summary

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) has published the Building Cost Information Service (BCIS) five-year civil engineering forecast. The forecast reveals that civil engineering tender prices will rise by 26% over the forecast period (second quarter 2020–second quarter 2025). BCIS reports that the UK gross domestic product (GDP) will significantly fall in 2020 due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic however it is predicted that it will bounce back in 2021 and 'GDP is then expected to grow by 4% in 2023, then growing by under 3% per annum over the remainder of the forecast period'. The infrastructure construction output will rise by 40% over the forecast period, with a 4% fall in 2020, followed by a 17% increase in 2021, 'then slower but still strong output over the remainder of the forecast, with increases of between 6% and 9%'. BCIS adds that most work in civil engineering is carried out in the open air,...