WELLINGTON, July 30 (Xinhua) -- The 2018 National Construction Pipeline Report released on Monday showed signs of sustained growth in New Zealand's construction sector for the next six years.
The report provides a projection of national building and construction activity for the next six years, through to Dec. 31, 2023. It includes national and regional breakdowns of actual and forecast residential building, non-residential building and infrastructure activity.
Minister for Building and Construction Jenny Salesa said that since the Construction Pipeline forecasts were first published in 2013, the modelling forecasts sustained growth, reflecting strong construction demand nationwide.
"Further, national dwelling unit consents are projected to reach historic highs and we have already seen evidence of this with consenting in Auckland currently at its highest level for 15 years," Salesa said.
New Zealand's traditional construction boom-bust cycles have undermined the certainty and confidence needed to grow skills and sustain a robust workforce over time, she said, adding that gains made in peak periods dissipate and the effort to gear up again has taken energy that could have been more usefully applied to supporting innovation and efficiencies.
"Greater confidence and certainty within the construction sector will provide a more stable foundation as we embark on the decade-long KiwiBuild project to deliver an additional 100,000 modest starter homes into the market," the minister said.