ČSÚ: Construction production in the Czech Republic fell by 2.6 percent year-on-year last year

Construction production in the Czech Republic fell by 2.6 percent year-on-year last year, while a year earlier it grew by 2.6 percent. A more significant decline was recorded in civil engineering, which includes the construction of roads or telecommunications and energy networks, whose output was 4.7 percent lower year-on-year. Production in civil engineering, which is the construction of buildings, fell by 1.8 per cent. Last December alone, the construction industry's year-over-year decline slowed to 4.6 percent from 6.5 percent in November. On a month-on-month basis, production was up 1.3 percent. The data was published today by the Czech Statistical Office (ČSÚ).

For most of last year, construction output declined year-on-year. Statisticians recorded growth twice, in January and June. In January, construction output was 5.3 percent higher year-on-year and in June by 0.9 percent. In the other months, it declined, with the biggest year-on-year drop in April, by 7.1 per cent.

"Building authorities issued 77,399 building permits in 2023, down 10.1 per cent year-on-year and the lowest figure for the period since 2015," the statisticians said today. The indicative value of construction permits issued last year rose 16.8 percent year-on-year to CZK 601.7 billion. The number of flats started last year was 15.5 per cent lower year-on-year at 35,700. The number of completed flats fell by 3.2 percent to 38,082.

In December, the overall decline in construction output was cushioned by civil engineering, whose output fell by 1.3 percent year-on-year. Engineering construction faced a higher comparative base and fell by 12.5 percent," said Petra Cuřínová, Head of the ČSÚ's Construction and Housing Statistics Department.

Building authorities issued 7.5 percent fewer building permits in December year-on-year, 6,197 of them. The indicative value of permitted constructions increased by 62.4 percent to CZK 84.2 billion. Construction started in December on 3,166 flats, down 16.5 per cent year-on-year, while the number of completed flats rose by five per cent to 5,002 compared to December 2022.

The average number of registered employees in construction enterprises with 50 or more employees increased by 1.1 percent year-on-year in December, and their average gross monthly wages rose by 2.3 percent year-on-year.

Source: ČSÚ and CTK