Output of Hungaryʼs construction sector climbed 40.1% year-on-year in April, show monthly data released by the Central Statistical Office (KSH) on Friday. For the period January-April 2019, output was up 45.8% year-on-year.
Output of the building segment was up 34.3% in April, lifted by the construction of industrial buildings, offices and homes, the KSH said. Civil engineering output increased 47.9%, supported by road and railway projects, it added.
In a month-on-month comparison, construction output fell 3.8% from March, adjusted for seasonal and working day effects.
In absolute terms, output stood at HUF 306.5 bln in April, and totaled HUF 1.084 trillion in January-April.
The order stock in the sector was down 6.0% at the end of April from 12 months earlier. The stock rose 50.3% in the buildings segment, but was down 19.3% in the civil engineering segment.
The volume of new orders was down 4.4% as new orders for buildings rose 19.0%, while civil engineering orders fell a similar 19.0%. Among buildings, in addition to high-value industrial investments, contracts were signed mainly for educational and sports facilities, the KSH noted.
Analyst Gergely Suppan of TakarékBank told state news agency MTI that he expects construction sector output to rise by around 30% this year, substantially contributing to economic growth. The construction of new homes is boosting sectoral output, with a possible 25,000 homes to be completed in 2019, he noted, although adding that the shortage of skilled labor in the construction sector continues to pose a significant problem.
Construction data for May 2019 will be published on July 16.
Article courtesy of the Budapest Business Journal
Original article can be found on https://bbj.hu/economy/construction-output-up-40-in-april_167078
