Malaysia Construction Market Outlook 2014

Malaysia’s construction industry stays robust in 2014 with a high level of investment from government sector and private sector projects. The growth was largely led by an increase in infrastructure and non-residential projects, which include several packages of Mass Rapid Transit (MRT), Ikea Shopping Complex at Jalan Cochrane and West Coast Expressway. Moving forward, the construction industry in 2015 aims for a steady growth with more projects coming onstream, as a result of the ongoing implementation of ETP projects, supportive government initiatives, and strong inflows of foreign investment projects such as the Seagate manufacturing plant at Batu Kawan Industrial Park and Iskandar Malaysia in Johor. The gain in momentum in the execution of various government sector and private sector projects is expected to contribute significantly in maintaining the steady growth of the national economy in the region of 4 % to 5% in 2015. The implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) on 01 April 2015, which is expected to temporarily slow down the construction industry, will subside with time. The early 2015 construction activities could experience a pushing up of the schedule of projects in order to beat cost increases resulting from the GST. The introduction of Green technology policies in 2009 has made a positive impact on the Malaysia construction industry by accelerating Green developments. There is a greater interest in Green building materials and technology with more projects being certified by the Green Building Index (GBI). The government is also encouraging the adoption of Industrialised Building Systems (IBS) i.e., pre-fabrication construction systems such as walls, doors etc that are built offsite. Overall, the Malaysia construction industry is expected to remain strong in year 2015. (Nish PKN)
Published: November 2014
Pages: 110
Format: Soft Copy PDF