Summary

The Belgian construction industry grew at a CAGR of 6.15% for the period 2003-2008. Non-residential sector's market share was 56.7% in 2008, while residential sector accounted for the balance 43.3%. The construction sector is one of the main industrial sectors in Belgium and employs an approximate workforce of 193,000. The Belgian construction market recorded an output value of €29.5 billion (US$43.4 billion) in 2008. In 2007, the construction sector contributed approximately 9% to the Belgian GDP. High labor cost and high levels of productivity have been the unique features of the Belgian construction industry. In recent years, the property side strong demand has had an increasing material impact on the Belgium housing market. The housing prices have risen by an average of 9.5% between 1998 and 2006, with prices picking up pace to almost 14% per year over the past three years. The main factor behind this increase was the fall in long rates since the early nineties and that was the result of lower long rates borrowing, which provided households with considerably more purchasing power on the property market. Residential and non-residential construction sectors have shown higher growth rates than any other sector in the economy in 2007. The high growth rate is due to a host of construction activities across the Belgian economy, tied with low interest rates on housing loans since 2003, and a combination of government tax deduction initiatives. In 2007, the Belgian GDP grew by 2.8% and led to the boom in construction sector. The growth in 2006 and 2007 was seen mainly due to substantial increases in demand for non-residential activity, especially investments from civil engineering.

Table of Contents

Belgium Construction Market Analysis
Belgium Construction Competitive Landscape
Leading Belgium Construction Companies
Belgium Construction Market Forecast
Appendix