There is now a general consensus that the market has turned around and is growing. Now comes the tough part for construction firms: coping with an expanding market.

The CICI measures executive sentiment about the current market and reflects the respondents' views on where it will be in the next three to six months and over a 12- to 18-month period. The index is based on responses to surveys sent out to more than 6,000 U.S. firms on ENR's lists of the leading contractors, subcontractors and design firms. The latest results are based on a survey conducted from June 5 to June 23.

For the fifth-straight quarter, the surveyed industry executives believe all the market sectors measured by the CICI are now in growth mode. The Confidence Index has risen steadily as the percentage of firms believing the market continues to decline has shrunk to single digits. But for the first time since ENR launched the CICI survey in 2009, more than 50% of firms surveyed believe the current market is growing.

For the CICI survey, execs were asked to assess current and future market prospects in general and in any of 15 market sectors in which they currently work. While more executives saw growth in their particular market sector than those in the same sector saw decline, optimism is waning in several markets, particularly in the infrastructure sectors.

在个别市场领域，石油市场排名最高，CICI评级为78，比第一季度下降了三分。第二高的市场是多单元住宅，稳定在75。工业和制造业本季度的三分升高至72。

Confidence in the infrastructure markets took a hit in this quarter. Regulatory uncertainty caused the power sector to suffer the biggest CICI rating decline, down six points to 61. Worries about a new highway bill and the Highway Trust Fund caused a six-point decline, to a 60 rating, in the transportation sector. Also suffering a six-point drop was hazardous waste, down to 58. The water-and-sewer market fell two points, to a 60 rating.

CFOs Worry About Financing

新泽西州普林斯顿建筑金融管理协会最新的Confindex调查的即将发布的结果表明，人们对整个市场的信心越来越大，但对承包商业务基础知识的一些根本关注。CFMA对总承包商，分包商和民事承包商的200 CFO进行了调查。

虽然Confindex评级100表示一个稳定market, higher ratings show growth is expected. "Our Confindex fell by one point, to 129 [on a scale of 200] for the second quarter," says Brigitte Meinders, director of marketing communications of CFMA.

Meinders指出，CFMA调查的“整体业务状况”部分强劲，达到了149，目前的信心部分也增加了2分，但是，CFO继续担心承包商面临的财务状况。。CFMA调查的“财务状况”部分下降了3分，降至113，比一年前下降了2.6％。

经济顾问Sage Policy Group Inc.，Baltimore和CFMA经济顾问的首席执行官Anirban Basu说：“总的来说，我们的成员认为市场正在增长。”但是，他说，在CFMA民意调查中调查的CFO担心恢复对承包商财务的影响。

"Contractors were able to survive the recession by relying on their backlog and cash reserves," says Basu. However, much of their cash reserves are now gone. To succeed in a growing market, firms need additional working capital for new equipment and increased staff. "The problem is that the banks are reluctant to lend the needed working capital to contractors, and, when they do, the terms of the loans are not as friendly as anticipated."

Basu says that, from a business standpoint, the beginning of a market recovery is one of the most dangerous times for contractors. "Competition usually remains strong, and margins are slow to recover. Further, contractors generally do not have the cash reserves to cover for a bad project," Basu says. This leads to cash-flow problems and contractor failures. "The banks know this, and that is why they are very careful about issuing business loans."

尽管金融机构可能不愿为承包商提供营运资金，但他们继续为项目融资提供资金。在这个季度，有33.9％的CICI受访者表示，与六个月前相比，项目融资的信用额度比上个季度的33.8％更容易获得。只有9.0％的人接受调查，他们在过去六个月中看到了任何信贷的收紧。

ENR also asked about the level of competition in this quarter's survey. When asked whether competition has changed in the past year, 28% said that competition had increased, while 60% said it was about the same.