New figures from the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research (TIER) show that Taiwan’s construction firms saw declines in May.
The figures, released Thursday, show that while the manufacturing sector grew by 0.13% and the service sector grew by 0.22%, Taiwan’s construction industry contracted by 3.4%. That puts the index for the construction industry at its lowest point since June last year.
TIER analysis shows that the construction industry performed poorly in spite of a global trend towards economic stability and an overall recovery in Taiwan after three months of declines.
TIER associate research fellow Arisa Liu says that the housing market may see an upswing in activity during the second half of the year. That’s in anticipation of heavier taxes on the sale of newly acquired property that are set to take effect next year.
Liu said that high prices and excess supply mean that analysts should not be too optimistic about the housing market’s performance. However, she said that the housing market will not collapse either. She said that construction and real estate firms have benefited from the Central Bank’s credit controls. Liu said that the housing market will most likely see a slowdown, with reduced supply and lowered prices.