Construction - December 2007

In December 2007 seasonally adjusted total construction output at constant prices increased by 0.7%, compared with November 2007. In comparison to December 2006, output at constant prices was up by 5.6%. The planning and building control authorities granted 8 853 building permits, which was by 22.6% less year-on-year. Approximate value of permitted constructions increased by 4.9% year-on-year and reached CZK 36.4 billion. In the year 2007 total construction output grew by 6.7%. Approximate value of permitted constructions decreased by 0.9% and reached CZK 357.7 billion.
Seasonally adjusted total construction output at constant prices grew by 0.7% month-on-month. The trend increased by 0.7% month-on-month (see Table 3).  
 
Total construction output at constant prices increased by 5.6% year-on-year, working days adjusted (WDA) total output grew by 7.2% (December 2007 was by one working day shorter). Construction output was varied by type of constructions. A marked increase was recorded for new construction, reconstruction and modernisation in civil engineering, especially due to completion of highway sections in the year 2007. Constant growth is observed in construction work abroad. A slight decrease occurred in new building construction as a result of lower comparative basis of non-residential buildings.
      
Contracted construction work carried out by construction enterprises with 20+ employees increased by 5.5% year-on-year at constant prices. New construction, reconstruction and modernisation recorded a 3.1% increase (contribution 2.5 percentage points), of which building construction fell by 2.6% (contribution -1.5 p.p.) and civil engineering works rose by 15.9% (contribution 4.0 p.p.). Repair and maintenance decreased by 5.8% (contribution -0.8 p.p.). Other work recorded a fall of 52.4% (contribution ‑0.4 p.p.). Construction work abroad grew two times (contribution 4.2 p.p.).
 
The number of employees in construction enterprises with 20+ employees dropped by 1.9% ^*) against December 2006. The average monthly nominal wage of employees increased by 3.7% year-on-year and reached CZK 23 538 (the real wage decreased by 1.6%). The average hourly wage grew by 8.6% year-on-year and stood at CZK 212. Labour productivity per employee increased by 7.6% and labour productivity per hour worked grew by 12.7%.
       
The planning and building control authorities granted 8 853 ^**) building permits in December 2007 (of which 5 216 for new constructions and 3 637 for renewals and enhancements). Building permits granted fell by 22.6% year-on-year.
 
Approximate value of constructions permitted in December 2007 increased by 4.9% in comparison to December 2006 and reached CZK 36.4 billion. New construction is valued at CZK 20.3 billion (down by 18.3%, contribution  -13.1 p.p.). Renewals and enhancements will make available constructions worth CZK 16.1 billion (up by 63.7%, contribution 18.0 p.p.). The increase in the approximate value of new construction was differentiated; the total fall was mainly due to non-residential buildings (down by 55.0%, contribution -15.6 p.p.) as a result of the high comparative basis of December 2006. Approximate value of renewals and enhancements in other constructions rose nearly four times (contribution 16.3 p.p.); especially financially demanding repair, reconstruction and modernisation of roads and highways.
 
The planning and building control authorities permitted the construction of 3 994 dwellings, which was by 334 dwellings fewer (-7.7%) than in December 2006. Out of that, 3 465 dwellings (down by 268 dwellings) will be obtained by new construction and 529 dwellings (down by 66 dwellings) by renewals and enhancements. The approximate value of newly permitted dwellings in multi-dwelling buildings was CZK 9.0 billion.
The planning and building control authorities permitted the construction of buildings with a floor space of 812.0 thousand m ² (-21.2%), of which floor space of residential buildings decreased by 8.0% and of non-residential buildings fell by 31.3%. The average floor space of a newly constructed dwelling was 111.3 m ² and the approximate value was CZK 22.6 thousand per m ².
In the year 2007 total construction output grew by 6.7% year-on-year. Approximate value of permitted dwellings decreased by 0.9%. In enterprises with 20+ employees the number of employees dropped by 1.5%, the average wage of employees increased by 7.9% and labour productivity grew by 7.5%.
According to Eurostat News Release, WDA construction output in the EU27 decreased by 0.2% year-on-year in November 2007, of which building construction dropped by 0.2% and civil engineering by 0.5%. Among the EU member states for which data were available, the highest increases were observed in Poland (+2.3%) and Romania (+1.8%). The largest decreases were recorded in Spain (‑3.9%), Germany (-0.7%) and Slovakia (-0.1%)

Analysis - Analysis of the construction sector in the fourth quarter of 2007  

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Note
Contact:                                Vladimir Zikmund, phone (+420) 274054252, e-mail: vladimir.zikmund@csu.gov.cz
Data source:                        CZSO direct survey in enterprises with 20+ employees and in planning and building control authorities
End of data collection:       7 February 2008
End of data processing:    12 February 2008
Related publications:         /1-ep-8
8201-07 Construction
8202-07 Building Permits Granted
 
Data in Table 1 for October and November 2007 are revised; data for December and the year 2007 are final.
Data in Table 2 are final.

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*) Employment indicators are observed in construction enterprises with 20+ employees. The average registered number of employees does not include agency workers.
**) On 1 January 2007, a new Act No. 183/2006 Sb., on Territorial Planning and Building Code (the Building Act), was brought in. It newly resolves, especially in Sections 103 and 104, the problem of “granting building permits”. This new Act may have an impact on absolute values in time series covering new construction and renewals and enhancements, particularly the numbers of building permits and corresponding approximate values for non-residential buildings, environmental constructions and other constructions.