Building construction starts drop 80% to P575B in 2011

MANILA, Philippines - Building starts fell to P575 billion in 2011, from a peak of P657 billion in 2010 after a strong start to the year industry saw a dramatic drop of 80 percent to the lowest levels experienced since the global financial crisis in 2009, a property research firm said.

“Building construction is related to economic growth, that is why BCI’s up-to-the-minute database is so interesting,” said Ian Reyes, chief data analyst of BCI Asia Philippines.

He said sectors that contributed to the drop were industrial, residential, community, and office at 66.71 percent, 19.52 percent, 18.52 percent and 10.40 percent, respectively, compared with 2010. Some sectors, however, managed to buck the trend: retail and hotel, and education and research rose 54.67 percent and 28.41 percent, respectively.

“Big projects in the tourism and education sectors indicate that it isn’t all doom and gloom,” Reyes said. “Clearly there are expectations that those are areas worthy of investment and not just short term fads.”