Branch of decoration - Deep construction Motor for construction companies - Housing construction is crisis-stricken
Assignments from the economy and the public sector are gradually bringing the crisis-stricken construction industry in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern back into swing, but residential construction remains in the doldrums. According to the regional construction association in Schwerin, sales in the first five months totaled approximately 800 million Euro, 12 percent above the previous year. A possible reason for the increase could be higher construction prices, as the number of hours worked was under the previous year's level.
The strongest sector was once again industrial construction, which contributed an increase of about 18 percent and accounted for almost half of the total sales. Publicly financed road construction reported an increase of nearly 26 percent. A strong increase in orders of almost 30 percent promises good utilization of the capacities of road construction companies. Almost two-thirds of the contracts awarded since January were for civil engineering, a sign that the expansion of the fiber-optic network for the internet is progressing.
Civil engineering brings many new orders
The total value of new orders reached 739 million Euro at the end of May, 15 percent above the same period last year. The increase in May - driven by civil engineering - was exceptionally strong at 48 percent. "Whether public investments will continue to grow at this rate, given the budget situations in municipalities, states, and the federal government, remains questionable," said Bauverband business manager Jörn-Christoph Jansen.
Housing construction remains a concern
Unchanged concerns the housing construction. "The trough in housing construction has not been passed yet. With a minus of 5 percent, the sales in housing construction in the first five months are still below the level of the weak previous year," Jansen noted. The development in building permits does not provide reason for hope for a turnaround in trends. "From January to May, over 35 percent fewer residential buildings were approved. This shows how little will be built in the near future," Jansen said. A bright spot could be the increase in orders compared to the very weak previous year.
For statistical recording, the Bauverband relied on data from companies with more than 20 employees. These employ about half of the approximately 24,000 construction workers and engineers in the state, contributing significantly to the total turnover of the industry.
- Despite the improvement in the economic situation of the construction industry in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, the 'economy motor' of housing construction continues to struggle, with sales still below the previous year's level.
- The 'construction industry' is experiencing a gradual recovery due to assignments from the economy and public sector, but the 'branch of construction' focused on housing construction is yet to show significant improvement.
- Association representatives have noted that while 'sales' in the first five months of the year have increased, the 'number of hours worked' in 'housing construction' is still lower than the previous year.
- In Schwerin, 'statistics' show that 'housing construction' accounts for a smaller share of the total sales compared to other sectors like 'industrial construction' and 'publicly financed road construction'.
- To support 'housing construction', local associations are advocating for policies that encourage 'new orders' and 'building permits', as they believe this could help revive the 'associations' and 'companies' within this 'branch of construction'.
