Over the past year, many parts of the resources and heavy engineering sectors have also been at virtually full capacity, and this has, among other things, limited our export performance. Some parts of the services sector, such as accountancy and other professional services, are also fully stretched. On the other hand, there are other parts of the economy where things are relatively normal.
But overall we are hearing more reports of businesses finding difficulty in hiring suitable labour and having to pay more for material inputs. The most obvious signs of this are the increases now being seen in producer prices at all levels and output prices for building and construction.