Structural steel industry 'plateaus' with economic slowdown

The structural steel industry is expecting to see capacity about 28% up over the next year, as large vertical and infrastructure projects finish and order books thin.It's a clear signal of the impacts of economic slowdown in a construction sector hit by a tougher development environment and escalating finance rates. Latest Statistics New Zealand building activity data bear that out, with seasonally adjusted new-build volumes down 1.6% for the three-months to December on the prior quarter, led by a fall of 2.6% in residential work. ...