Construction output growth will accelerate marginally to 3.7% in 2019, before easing back in the latter part of the forecast period, reflecting trends in some of the largest markets, notably China and the US.

Key questions answered:
What is the outlook for the global construction industry?
In which regions is the global construction expanded at a fast pace?
How has the construction industry in major markets been performing in recent quarters?
What is the size of the global construction industry, and how much is it projected to increase by over the coming years?

The Construction Intelligence Center (CIC) expects the pace of expansion in the global construction industry to average 3.6% a year overthe forecast period (2018–2022) – down slightly compared with 3.7% in the March 2018 forecast update. In real value terms (measured at constant 2017 prices and US$ exchange rates1), global construction output is forecast to rise to US$12.7 trillion in 2022, up from US$10.6 trillion in 2017.

The global economy will continue to post healthy rates of growth in 2018–2019, and investor confidence will remain buoyant. The expected tightening in monetary policy in major markets in 2018 will start to push up the cost of borrowing, but with interest rates generally at or near historical lows, this process is not expected to have a major impact on construction activity during the early part of the forecast period.