CSCEC trading update points to residential construction revival in China

China’s biggest contractor, China State Construction and Engineering Corporation (CSCEC) has seen strong growth in new construction contracts, driven by residential work.

CSCEC reported a 16.4% year-on-year increase in new contracts signed in January to March 2023.

The total value of the contracts signed was CNY 971.8 billion (US$140.3 billion).

The bulk of those new construction contracts came from residential, pointing to a revival in China’s housing market following the end of the country’s stringent Covid-19 lockdown policies.

CSCEC claimed to have signed CNY 721.8 billion (US$104.2 billion) in new housing construction contracts, a year-on-year rise of 15.5%.

The contractor also signed CNY 243.8 billion in new infrastructure contracts (US$35.2 billion), a rise of 18.8%.

And it also took on CNY 4.2 billion (US$610 million) of new survey and design services.

Meanwhile, CSCEC’s real estate sales increased sharply to CNY 112.4 billion (US16.2 billion), up 82.8% year on year.

The company has a real estate land bank of 91.14 million sq m, having purchased 0.68 million sq m in lands over the period.