Construction - December 2008

In December 2008 seasonally adjusted total construction output at constant prices was down by 0.5%, compared with the previous month. In comparison to December 2007, construction output at constant prices decreased by 2.6%. The planning and building control authorities granted 9 104 building permits, i.e. up by 2.8% year-on-year. Approximate value of permitted constructions decreased by 28.6% year-on-year and reached CZK 26.0 billion.
In the year 2008 total construction output grew by 0.6%. Approximate value of permitted constructions was CZK 390.8 billion (+9.3%).
In December 2008 seasonally adjusted total construction output at constant prices decreased by 0.5% month-on-month. The trend was down by 0.1% (see Table 3).
  
December total construction output at constant prices dropped by 2.6% year-on-year; working days adjusted (WDA) construction output decreased by 5.9% (December 2008 had by two working days more than December 2007). Like in the previous months, the output decrease in building construction and output increase in civil engineering continued.
 
Contracted construction work carried out by construction enterprises with 20+ employees decreased by 2.2% year-on-year at constant prices. New construction, reconstruction and modernisation dropped by 0.7% (contribution -0.6 percentage points); building construction fell by 10.7% (contribution -5.6 p.p.) and civil engineering grew by 17.8% (contribution 5.0 p.p.). Repair and maintenance increased by 9.5% (contribution 1.2 p.p.) and other work dropped by 18.4% (contribution -0.1 p.p.). Construction work abroad decreased by 33.4% (contribution -2.7 p.p.).
 
The number of employees in construction enterprises with 20+ employees fell by 0.7%* ⁾ against December 2007. The average monthly nominal wage of employees increased by 17.5% year-on-year and reached CZK 27 665 (real wage grew by 13.4%). The average hourly wage increased by 9.4% year-on-year and stood at CZK 232. Labour productivity per employee decreased by 1.5% and labour productivity per hour worked fell by 8.3%.
 
The planning and building control authorities granted 9 104 building permits (+2.8%); 5 459 permits were for new constructions and 3 645 permits for renewals and enhancements. Compared to December 2007, new construction increases were recorded in building permits for residential buildings (+22.4%) and non-residential buildings (+19.6%). Decreases occurred in environmental constructions (-3.4%) and other buildings (-3.8%). Building permits for renewals and enhancements grew most in other constructions (+17.5%) and non-residential buildings (+3.8%); decreases were observed in residential buildings (-0.2%) and environmental constructions (-53.7%).
 
Approximate value of constructions permitted in December 2008 decreased by 28.6% y-o-y and reached CZK 26.0 billion. New constructions are valued at CZK 18.2 billion (-10.6%, contribution ‑5.9 p.p.). Renewals and enhancements will make available constructions worth CZK 7.8 billion (‑51.3%, contribution -22.7 p.p.).
Compared to December 2007, approximate value of new constructions grew in environmental constructions (+47.8%, contribution 2.6 p.p.) and non-residential buildings (+4.7%, contribution 0.6 p.p.); decreases were recorded in residential buildings (-26.9%, contribution -6.4 p.p.) and other constructions (-18.7%, contribution -2.7 p.p.). Approximate value of renewals and enhancements grew in environmental constructions (+46.1%, contribution 0.2 p.p.) and residential buildings (+4.5%, contribution 0.2 p.p.). Decreases were observed in non-residential buildings (-41.4%, contribution -7.4 p.p.) and other constructions (-75.3%, contribution -15.7 p.p.).
 
The planning and building control authorities permitted the construction of 2 784 dwellings, which was by 1 210 dwellings fewer (-30.3%) in comparison to December 2007; 2 316 dwellings (-1 149 dwellings) will be obtained by new construction and 468 dwellings (-61 dwellings) by renewals and enhancements. Approximate value of newly permitted dwellings in multi-dwelling buildings was CZK 6.8 billion. The planning and building control authorities permitted the construction of buildings with a floor area of 590.0 thousand m ² (-27.3%); floor area of residential buildings decreased by 20.0% (contribution -10.1 p.p.) and of non-residential buildings dropped by 34.8% (contribution -17.3 p.p.). The average floor area of a newly constructed dwelling was 133.5 m ² and the approximate value was CZK 21.1 thousand per m ².
In the year 2008 total construction output grew by 0.6% on 2007. Approximate value of permitted constructions increased by 9.3%. Employment in enterprises with 20+ employees dropped by 0.5%, average wage rose by 11.6% and labour productivity grew by 0.6%.According to the Eurostat news release, WDA construction output in the EU27 was down by 4.2% y-o-y in November 2008; building construction decreased by 4.6% and civil engineering dropped by 2.5%. Among the EU member states for which data were available, the highest construction output increases were recorded in Slovakia (+16.5%), Romania (+13.8%) and Poland (+7.0%). The highest decreases were registered in Spain (‑9.7%) and Slovenia (‑8.2%).

Analysis - Analysis of the construction sector – fourth quarter of 2008 and the year 2008  

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Notes
Contact: Petra Curinova, phone (+420) 274054199, e-mail : petra.curinova@csu.gov.cz
Data source: CZSO direct survey in enterprises with 20+ employees and in planning and building control authorities
End of data collection:       9 February 2009
End of data processing:    12 February 2009
Related publications:         /1-ep-8
8201-08 Construction in the Czech Republic
8202-08 Building Notices Received and Building Permits Granted
In Table 1, data for October and November 2008 have been revised; data for December and the year 2008 are preliminary.
Data In Table 2 are finalised.

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*) The average registered number of employees does not include agency workers.