Construction markets ‘heating up’

There is an expectation of increasing construction activity around the globe, but the lack of skilled workers is a major issue for the industry, according to the Turner and Townsend market survey 2018.

The report identifies markets as ‘cold’, ‘lukewarm’, ‘warm, ‘hot’ or ‘overheating’. Using this measurement, the survey showed that half of the 46 markets the report investigated are expected to heat up in 2018, while just two are expected to cool.

Five cities were identified as ‘hot’: Dublin, Melbourne, Munich, Sydney and Tokyo. Meanwhile, Amsterdam, San Francisco and Seattle were described as ‘overheating’.

This ‘heating up’ was felt all across the world, with the regions of Africa, Asia and Latin America said to be particularly picking up pace regarding construction activity.

There was a strong link between those cities said to be ‘cold’ and commodity prices, with cities dependent on commodity process and thus sensitive to changes dominating the list. The report found Doha, Moscow, Muscat, Perth and São Paulo to be ‘cold’.

The report also identified challenges to the construction sector. According to the report 67% of respondents said that skilled workforce shortages had a major or large impact on the delivery of construction projects, making it the number one problem identified.

Other areas of concern identified as having a major or large impact were government red tape, the rising costs of construction and low workplace efficiency.

To view the report, click here.