Construction work value shrinks 14.2 pct in fourth quarter
KUALA LUMPUR: The value of construction work done shrank by 14.2 per cent year-on-year (y-o-y) to RM31.7 billion in the fourth quarter (Q4) of last year, the Department of Statistics Malaysia said.
The special trades activities subsector soared by 29.3 per cent y-o-y (Q3 2020: 1.6 per cent) but all other subsectors continued to contract, chief statistician Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin said.
“The civil engineering subsector declined by 25.0 per cent, residential buildings subsector by 10.9 per cent and non-residential buildings subsector by 6.3 per cent,” he said in a statement yesterday.
Mohd Uzir said the civil engineering subsector remained dominant with the biggest share of the value of construction work done, at 39.6 per cent.
This marked its 21st quarter at the top since Q4 2015.
It was followed by nonresidential buildings (27.5 per cent share), residential buildings (25.4 per cent) and special trades activities (7.4 per cent).
The private sector continued to lead construction activity with a 55.7 per cent share or RM17.7 billion of the total value of construction work done.
For the whole of last year, the value of construction work done contracted by 19.4 per cent to RM117.9 billion from RM146.4 billion in 2019.
All sub-sectors recorded a decline in the value of construction work done.
The civil engineering subsector decreased 24.0 per cent, residential buildings subsector fell 17.2 per cent, non-residential buildings subsector dipped 17.1 per cent, and special trades activities subsector shrank 2.1 per cent.
In a separate statement, Mohd Uzir said the Building Material Cost Index (BCI) without steel bars for almost all regions in Peninsular Malaysia increased by between 0.1 and 2.0 per cent for almost all building categories in January 2021 compared with the previous month.
Meanwhile, the BCI in region E (Pahang) and F (Terengganu and Kelantan) decreased between 0.1 and 1.0 per cent for almost all categories of building.
For the BCI with steel bars, Mohd Uzir noted it increased for almost all regions in Peninsular Malaysia by between 0.1 and 2.1 per cent for almost all building categories except for five storeys and above (reinforced concrete or RC) building (for accommodation) and five storeys and above (RC) building (for office) in region D (Johor).