China Construction Market Size, Trends, and Forecasts by Sector - Commercial, Industrial, Infrastructure, Energy and Utilities, Institutional and Residential Market Analysis to 2029 (Q2 2025)
Summary
GlobalData expects the Chinese construction industry to record a growth of 3.2% in real terms in 2025, supported by investment in the infrastructure and energy sectors. According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the construction industry’s value-add grew by 3.1% year on year (YoY) at the end of Q1 2025, preceded by YoY growth of 3.8% at the end of Q4 2024 and 4.1% at the end of Q3 2024. According to the State Taxation Administration, China launched 182 major projects in Q1 2025, requiring total investments of CNY340 billion ($47.4 billion). Indeed, this was driven by large-scale transport infrastructure and manufacturing plant developments. However, in the short to medium term, the sluggishness in the residential sector is expected to weigh on the overall construction output, owing to the prevalence of low housing demand and rising debt amongst property developers. Furthermore, the rising concern over a trade war between China and the US, with the US imposing of tariff on Chinese imports, is expected to further weigh on consumer and investment in the country. According to the State Council of the People’s Republic of China, the total Foreign direct investment (FDI) fell by 27.1% YoY in 2024, reaching CNY826.3 billion ($115.3 billion).
GlobalData expects the construction industry to record an average annual growth rate of 4.2% between 2026 and 2029. This will be supported by investment in transport infrastructure and industrial projects, coupled with the government’s plan to achieve net-zero emissions of greenhouse gases by 2060. In line with this, in September 2024, the Shanghai local government announced the Shanghai Action Plan for Accelerating the Green and Low-carbon Transformation (2024-27). This plan aims to deploy solar capacity across Shanghai with a combined installed capacity of 4.5 million kW by 2027 and acceleratethe construction of offshore wind power plants. The government approved the construction of ten new nuclear reactors in April 2025, with construction expected to start in 2026 and grid connection anticipated by 2032. The total investment for these projects is estimated at CNY200 billion ($27.9 billion), averaging about CNY13.3 billion ($2.7 billion) per reactor. Additionally, growth within the construction industry will be supported by government investments as part of the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) that focuses primarily on innovations, digitalization, the modernization of industrial systems, and low carbon emissions. The plan outlined the goal of the construction of 150 new reactors by 2035 with a total estimated investment of CNY3.1 trillion ($432.6 billion).
GlobalData’s Construction in China - Key Trends and Opportunities to 2029 (Q2 2025) report provides detailed market analysis, information and insights into the Chinese construction industry, including -
- The Chinese construction industry's growth prospects by market, project type and construction activity
- Critical insight into the impact of industry trends and issues, as well as an analysis of key risks and opportunities in the Chinese construction industry
- Analysis of the mega-project pipeline, focusing on development stages and participants, in addition to listings of major projects in the pipeline.
This report provides a comprehensive analysis of the construction industry in China. It provides -
- Historical (2020-2024) and forecast (2025-2029) valuations of the construction industry in China, featuring details of key growth drivers.
- Segmentation by sector (commercial, industrial, infrastructure, energy and utilities, institutional and residential) and by sub-sector
- Analysis of the mega-project pipeline, including breakdowns by development stage across all sectors, and projected spending on projects in the existing pipeline.
- Listings of major projects, in addition to details of leading contractors and consultants
- Identify and evaluate market opportunities using our standardized valuation and forecasting methodologies
- Assess market growth potential at a micro-level with over 600 time-series data forecasts
- Understand the latest industry and market trends
- Formulate and validate business strategies using GlobalData's critical and actionable insight
- Assess business risks, including cost, regulatory and competitive pressures
- Evaluate competitive risk and success factors
- 1 Executive Summary
- 2 Construction Industry: At-a-Glance
- 3 Context
- 3.1 Economic Performance
- 3.2 Political Environment and Policy
- 3.3 Demographics
- 3.4 Risk Profile
- 4 Construction Outlook
- 4.1 All Construction
- Outlook
- Latest news and developments
- Construction Projects Momentum Index
- 4.2 Commercial Construction
- Outlook
- Project analytics
- Latest news and developments
- 4.3 Industrial Construction
- Outlook
- Project analytics
- Latest news and developments
- 4.4 Infrastructure Construction
- Outlook
- Project analytics
- Latest news and developments
- 4.5 Energy and Utilities Construction
- Outlook
- Project analytics
- Latest news and developments
- 4.6 Institutional Construction
- Outlook
- Project analytics
- Latest news and developments
- 4.7 Residential Construction
- Outlook
- Project analytics
- Latest news and developments
- 5 Key Industry Participants
- 5.1 Contractors
- 5.2 Consultants
- 6 Construction Market Data
- 7 Appendix
- 7.1 What is this Report About?
- 7.2 Definitions
- 7.3 CRI Methodology
- 8 About GlobalData
- 9 Contact Us
- List of Tables
- Table 1: Construction Industry Key Data
- Table 2: China, Key Economic Indicators
- Table 3: China, Gross Output of Construction, CNY Billion
- Table 4: China, Commercial Construction Output by Project Type (Real % Change), 2020–29
- Table 5: China, Top Commercial Construction Projects by Value
- Table 6: China, Industrial Construction Output by Project Type (Real % Change), 2020–29
- Table 7: China, Top Industrial Construction Projects by Value
- Table 8: China, Infrastructure Construction Output by Project Type (Real % Change), 2020-29
- Table 9: China, Top Infrastructure Construction Projects by Value
- Table 10: China, Energy and Utilities Construction Output by Project Type (Real % Change), 2020-29
- Table 11: China, Top Energy and Utilities Construction Projects by Value
- Table 12: China, Institutional Construction Output by Project Type (Real % Change), 2020-29
- Table 13: China, Top Institutional Construction Projects by Value
- Table 14: China, Residential Construction Output by Project Type (Real % Change), 2020-29
- Table 15: China, Top Residential Construction Projects by Value
- Table 16: China, Key Contractors
- Table 17: China, Key Consultants
- Table 18: China, Construction Output Value (Real, $ Billion)
- Table 19: China, Construction Output Value (Nominal, CNY Billion)
- Table 20: GlobalData Construction Market Definitions
- Table 21: Risk Dimensions
- Table 22: Ratings, Scores and Definitions
- List of Figures
- Figure 1: North-East Asia, Construction Output (Real % Change), 2023–29
- Figure 2: China, Construction Output by Sector (Real % Change), 2023–25 and 2026–29
- Figure 3: China, Risk Summary
- Figure 4: China, Risk Regional Comparison
- Figure 5: China, Construction Output Value (Real, $ Million, 2022 Prices and Exchange Rate), 2020–29
- Figure 6: China, Construction Output Value, by Sector (Real, $ Million), 2020–29
- Figure 7: China, Construction Output, CNY Million
- Figure 8: China, Construction Value-Add, % Change YoY
- Figure 9: China, Total Value of Buildings Completed by Construction Enterprises (Accumulated, CNY Billion)
- Figure 10: China, Construction Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), Seasonally Adjusted
- Figure 11: China, Investment in Fixed Assets in the Construction Sector, (Accumulated % Change, YoY)
- Figure 12: China, Total Value of New Contracts Signed by Construction Enterprises, (CYN Trillion)
- Figure 13: China, Highest Value of New Contracts Signed by Construction Enterprises, (CYN Trillion)
- Figure 14: China, Investment in Real Estate Development, (Accumulated % Change, YoY)
- Figure 15: China, Construction Projects Momentum Index
- Figure 16: Region, Construction Projects Momentum Index
- Figure 17: China, Commercial Construction Output by Project Type (Real, $ Million), 2020–29
- Figure 18: China, Commercial Construction Projects Pipeline, Value by Stage ($ Million)
- Figure 19: China, Total Floor Space of Commercial Buildings Under Construction, in Million m2 (Accumulated)
- Figure 20: China, Total Retail Sales of Consumer Goods, Current Prices, (Accumulated, CNY Billion)
- Figure 21: China, Investment in Commercial Real Estate Development (CNY Billion)
- Figure 22: China, Floor Space of Office Buildings Under Construction (Accumulated, % Change YoY)
- Figure 23: China, Investment in Office Buildings (CNY Billion)
- Figure 24: China, Industrial Construction Output by Project Type (Real, $ Million), 2020–29
- Figure 25: China, Industrial Construction Projects Pipeline, Value by Stage ($ Million)
- Figure 26: China, Industrial and Manufacturing Value-Add, % Change, YoY
- Figure 27: China, Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index, Seasonally Adjusted
- Figure 28: China, Total Exports ($ billion)
- Figure 29: China, Infrastructure Construction Output by Project Type (Real, $ Million), 2020-29
- Figure 30: China, Infrastructure Construction Projects Pipeline, Value by Stage ($ Million)
- Figure 31: China, Fixed Asset Investment in The Transport Sector (Accumulated % Change, YoY)
- Figure 32: China, Energy and Utilities Construction Output by Project Type (Real, $ Million), 2020-29
- Figure 33: China, Energy and Utilities Construction Projects Pipeline, Value by Stage ($ Million)
- Figure 34: China, Electricity Generation, in TWh
- Figure 35: China, Institutional Construction Output by Project Type (Real, $ Million), 2020-29
- Figure 36: China, Institutional Construction Projects Pipeline, Value by Stage ($ Million)
- Figure 37: China, Total Value of Buildings Completed for Scientific Research, Education, and Medical Use (in CNY Billion)
- Figure 38: China, Residential Construction Output by Project Type (Real, $ Million), 2020-29
- Figure 39: China, Residential Construction Projects Pipeline, Value by Stage ($ Million)
- Figure 40: China, Total Floor Space of Residential Area Under Construction and Total Floor Space of Residential Builds Started this Year (Accumulated % Change, YoY)
- Figure 41: China, Total Nominal Value of Residential Buildings Sold (CNY Trillion)
- Figure 42: China, Investment in Residential Real Estate Development (CNY Billion)
- Figure 43: China, Headquarters of Key Contractors (% of Total Project Pipeline)
- Figure 44: China, Headquarters of Key Consultants (% of Total Project Pipeline)
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