House-building slowed last month and civil engineering work fell for the first time since March as the construction industry showed new signs of losing momentum.

Builders have struggled to achieve sustained output growth for the past two years and recent hopes of a recovery appear to be fading.

Companies are still hiring more staff in anticipation of growing demand, but little of this is showing through.

The purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for the construction industry slowed to 52.9 in August, down from July’s 14-month high of 55.8.

Any score of above 50 indicates growth, so this dip signals a slowdown in the sector’s expansion.

“The construction sector slipped back into a slower growth phase in August, with this summer’s catch-up effect starting to unwind after projects were delayed by adverse weather at the start of 2018,” said Tim Moore from IHS Markit, which publishes the survey of private sector firms.