South Korea Construction Market Report and Forecast 2025-2034

The South Korea construction market size is estimated to expand at a CAGR of 2.60% in the forecast period of 2025-2034. The construction market in South Korea is driven by increasing government investments in infrastructure development and growing smart city projects.

Key Trends in the Market

Construction refers to the act of building bridges, roads, residential units, and infrastructure, among others; the construction sector includes public and private infrastructure and civil engineering services. With a surge in population, the need for households is increasing, supporting the market expansion. The market is driven by supportive government initiatives, urbanisation, infrastructural development, and technological advancements, among others.

• The Korean government is adopting policies with the aim to apply BIM (Building Information Modelling) to the entire construction sector, including civil engineering and architecture services by 2025, providing lucrative growth opportunities to the market.
• The increasing efforts towards the construction of smart cities in South Korea have been supporting the South Korea construction market growth. One such initiative includes the construction of a smart city named Songdo from scratch on 1,500 acres of land. Officially known as Songdo International Business District (IBD), it is one of the greenest cities on the planet, whose construction finally completed in 2020. Songdo is home to 106 LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified buildings along with schools, hospitals, apartments, office buildings, and cultural amenities, among others.
• The expansion of the residential sector due to rising investments in real estate and increasing urbanisation is supporting the market expansion. The rising construction of apartment complexes can also be attributed to the increasing land scarcity.
• The rising efforts of various key market players in the country to collaborate with international entities is providing lucrative growth opportunities to the market. For instance, in June 2023, Hyundai E&C signed a contract with Aramco, Saudi Arabia's state oil company, to build a petrochemical plant in Saudi Arabia.
• The country is heavily investing in research and development activities and technologies to enhance construction operations and formulate better methodologies. Lotte Engineering & Construction applied for a patent on technology that reinforces earth-retaining safety by using AI to observe cracks in buildings and roads.

South Korea Construction Market Segmentation

The EMR’s report titled “South Korea Construction Market Report and Forecast 2025-2034” offers a detailed analysis of the market based on the following segments:

Market Breakup by Construction Type:

• New Constructions
• Renovation

Market Breakup by End Use:

• Commercial
• Residential
• Institutional
• Industrial

Market Share by End Use

Commercial construction accounts for a significant South Korea construction market share. Commercial construction involves the construction of buildings and infrastructure that are used for business and commercial applications. Commercial property consists of malls, grocery stores, offices, industrial estates, and manufacturing shops, among others.

The market is witnessing rapid expansion due to increased commercial construction activities.  Increasing ventures in South Korea, such as commercial offshore wind power project, Jeonnam Offshore Wind Power is further supporting the market expansion. The wind farm is expected to begin its operations in 2024. The project was founded in 2020 as a 51-49 joint venture between SK E&S (South Korea) and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (Denmark).

Market Share by Construction Type

According to the South Korea construction market analysis, the demand for renovation is significantly increasing due to rising disposable incomes and changing consumer preferences in the region. In the contemporary world, people are making smart choices and thus, they need a house which is packed with numerous facilities including modular kitchens, electronic door locks, and wireless systems, among others. Furthermore, there is a growing emphasis on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), which is accelerating the shift towards green office spaces and the incorporation of environment friendly devices and equipment in buildings to reduce their carbon footprint. All these factors are resulting in an increased demand for renovation activities, boosting the South Korea construction market demand.

Competitive Landscape

The comprehensive EMR report provides an in-depth assessment of the market based on the Porter's five forces model along with giving a SWOT analysis. The report gives a detailed analysis of the following key players in South Korea construction market, covering their competitive landscape and latest developments like mergers, acquisitions, investments, and expansion plans.

Samsung C&T Corporation

Samsung C&T Corporation is a South Korean construction and engineering company which was founded in 1938 as one of the business units of Samsung, initially involved in construction and overseas trading operations. In 1975, the company was designated by the Korean government as the nation’s “first general trading company” to forefront nonindigenous sales operations. Apart from construction, the Samsung Group also operates in areas like shipbuilding and engineering, wind power, and power and control systems within the machinery and heavy industries sector.

Hyundai Motor Group

Hyundai Motor Group, founded in 1947, is a construction and engineering company. The company aims to create a better world and future through constant innovation. In 2023, the company entered a partnership with the largest energy company RWE in Europe to facilitate next-generation energy projects.

GS E&C Corp.

GS E&C Corp. was founded in 1969 and specialises in constructing and operating large scale privately funded infrastructure. It has a dedicated technical research institute, which allows the company to constantly work towards the development of new construction methods for projects such as marine suspension bridges and deep underground tunnels.

Other South Korea construction market players include Daewoo Engineering & Construction Co., Ltd., Posco Holdings, LOTTE Corp., Hoban Construction Ltd., and Hanwha Corporation, among others.