MANILA, Philippines — New construction projects declined in August as the number of approved building permits went down by two percent from a year ago amid rising costs of materials and unfavorable weather conditions.
Preliminary data released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed that the number of construction projects from approved building permits decreased to 14,340 in August from 14,627 in the same month last year.
While the number of approved construction projects went down, the value of these projects increased by 14 percent to P58.66 billion in August from P51.38 billion in the same month a year ago.
蝌蚪传媒 senior research fellow John Paolo Rivera said in an email that the decline in approved building permits “likely reflects a confluence of headwinds such as rising material and labor costs, tighter financing and higher borrowing rates and the after-effects of major weather disruptions and election-related spending slowdowns.”
PSA data showed that residential buildings accounted for the bulk or 9,820 of the approved construction permits in August. This is 5.3 percent higher than the previous year’s 9,325 residential construction projects.
The value of residential building projects approved in August slid by 13 percent to P18.96 billion from P21.86 billion in the same month last year.
Meanwhile, the number of approved non-residential building projects fell by 13 percent to 2,849 in August from 3,291 projects in the same month last year.
In terms of value, non-residential projects approved in August rose by 42 percent to P28.16 billion from P19.86 billion in the same month of 2024.
Approved permits for additions — increases in the height or area of an existing building — went down by 28 percent to 348 in August from 483 permits in the same month last year.
When it comes to value, the amount of this type of projects approved in August plunged by 79 percent to P499.52 million from P2.32 billion in the same month a year ago.
Alterations and repair of existing structures approved in August also decreased by 18 percent to 955 in August from the previous year’s 1,164.
Approved alterations and repairs in August amounted to P3.59 billion in August, 29 percent higher than the previous year’s P2.77 billion.
Permits for other construction projects rose slightly to 368 in August from 364 in the same month of 2024.
The value of other construction projects surged by 64 percent to P7.45 billion in August from P4.56 billion in the same month a year ago.
“Looking ahead, I expect permit approvals could continue to taper for the rest of the year unless input costs ease and credit conditions improve as residential and non-residential developers may hold off on new applications amid weaker demand and cost uncertainty,” Rivera said.
