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Construction fell 32.7% in the first half of the year, despite a new monthly improvement in June - Ambito
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La construcción se derrumbó 32,7% en el primer semestre, pese a nueva mejora mensual en junio
El sector arrojó un alza de 2,7% respecto de mayo, su tercer repunte consecutivo. En términos interanuales se hundió más de 35%.
www.ambito.com
August 8, 2024
The sector posted a 2.7% rise compared to May, its third consecutive rise. On an annual basis, it fell by more than 35%.
Construction collapsed sharply in the first half of the year.
Construction fell by 32.7% in the first half of the year , as a result of the adjustment implemented by the Government of Javier Milei in the first days of his mandate. This happened despite the fact that in June the sector showed a slight monthly improvement, the third consecutive one.
According to a report published by INDEC on Thursday, activity in this sector rose 2.7% compared to May, although it fell 35.2% compared to June 2023. Thus, it was 27.5% below the level of November, prior to the brutal stoppage of public works, and 33.7% behind last year's peak.
Among the different construction inputs, the largest declines were recorded in ceramic sanitary ware, limestone granite tiles, and asphalt. Likewise, the production of ceramic floors and coverings, concrete, iron and steel, and hollow bricks also suffered higher than average declines.
Employment improved in May, but remains below November level
INDEC data also showed that construction employed 382,686 people in May , which represented the first monthly increase since August 2023. Still, jobs were 18.1% lower than in May last year.On the other hand, the surface area to be built, authorized by the building permits granted for the execution of private works in a representative list of 176 municipalities, registered a decrease of 8.1% in May 2024 compared to the same month of the previous year.
The outlook for the coming months is not encouraging.
To assess the outlook for the coming months, INDEC conducted a survey of large companies in the sector, which showed unfavorable expectations regarding the expected level of activity for the period July-September 2024.Indeed, 59.1% of companies that carry out mainly private works expect that the level of activity in the sector will not change over the next three months, while 26.4% estimate that it will decrease and 14.5% that it will increase.
Among companies primarily engaged in public works, 48.7% believe that the level of activity will decrease during the period July-September 2024, while 41.4% believe that it will not change and 9.9% that it will increase.
Companies that carry out mainly private works and that expect activity in the sector to decline in the next three months point to the decline in economic activity and price instability as the main causes.
Meanwhile, companies that are mainly engaged in public works and that estimate a drop in activity in the sector in the next three months included delays in the payment chain as one of the main factors.
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