HONG KONG--(BUSINESS WIRE)--China’s megacities are some of the cheapest cities in the world to build in, according to the International Construction Costs 2019 report from Arcadis, the leading global Design & Consultancy firm for natural and built assets. The report ranks the relative cost of construction in 100 major cities.
Chinese metropolis’ rank at the tail-end of the Index: Beijing ranked 88th, Shanghai 90th, Chengdu 93rd, Guangzhou/Shenzhen 94th and Wuhan 95th. Hong Kong was ranked 3rd globally.
While the US-China trade war is having a mild impact on China’s economy, the central government has approved over US$160 billion in infrastructure works to stimulate economic growth. They are also bolstering domestic consumption through tax cuts and offering cheaper finance to businesses.
Digitization is essential for sustainable growth in China. While BIM applications and cloud technology are increasingly popular, usage lags behind the US and Europe.
Kenn Ng, China North - Operations Director & Head of Quantity Surveying, commented: "We applaud the Chinese government’s promotion of prefabricated construction targeting 50% of new-built projects by 2025. This will improve efficiency, safety and sustainability. We further encourage the government to increase the use of technology in public sector construction projects."
Ricky Ho, Deputy General Manager (Shenzhen), commented: "In 2018, China’s GDP increased by 6.7%, the lowest figure since 2009. Higher interest rates and hikes in material and labor costs will likely lead to a rise in construction costs over 2019. We expect wages to grow 3%-5%. The government is unlikely to loosen policies on housing purchases, mortgages or loans. This plus a cooling off in the real estate market will likely negatively impact the construction industry, which we expect to grow by 5.9% in 2019."
The report can be downloaded here.
Arcadis
Arcadis is the leading gloal Design & Consultancy for natural and built assets. Applying our deep market sector insights and collective design, consultancy, engineering, project and management services we work in partnership with our clients to deliver exceptional and sustainable outcomes throughout the lifecycle of their natural and built assets. We are 27,000 people, active in over 70 countries that generate €3.3 billion in revenues. We support UN-Habitat with knowledge and expertise to improve the quality of life in rapidly growing cities around the world.