Despite the recession, the Swiss construction sector is still very active. This phase, however, now appears to be coming to an end. After commercial construction began turning down at the beginning of the year, only a recent surge in residential construction is preventing a sharper drop in structural engineering.
A large volume of civil engineering work has maintained the momentum of the industry as a whole so far, but in the long run, civil engineering won't be able to take up the increasing slack in structural engineering, and the entire construction industry will be gripped by a downturn. Construction activity in Switzerland did in fact decline again in the fourth quarter.
These are the findings of the new Swiss Construction Index, which today saw its public launch. The results of a venture between the economists of Credit Suisse and the Swiss Contractors' Association, the Swiss Construction Index provides a snapshot of the economic state of Switzerland's construction industry, thus closing a gap in the provision of economic data.
Source: Credit Suisse
