"Longest Rainy Season in History..." August Construction Business Index Drops to Early 70s

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Yuri] Due to the longest rainy season in history causing difficulties in construction progress, the Construction Business Survey Index (CBSI) for August remained in the low 70s.

The Korea Research Institute for Construction Industry announced on the 1st that the CBSI for August recorded 73.5, down 4.0 points from the previous month. The CBSI had remained in the 60s from February to May due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, showing sluggish performance, but rebounded 14.6 points in June, approaching the 80s. However, it decreased again by 1.9 points in July and fell 4.0 points in August, recording 73.5 in the low 70s.

The decline was analyzed by the institute as being influenced by the "seasonal effect of reduced construction work during the heatwave period." In particular, last month recorded the longest rainy season, which caused difficulties in the progress of construction work. Park Cheolhan, a senior researcher at the institute, explained, "Typically, the index decreases by 4 to 6 points month-on-month due to the seasonal reduction in construction volume during the August heatwave period. Especially, analyzing the detailed BSI showed that the construction work progress BSI dropped by as much as 14.9 points compared to the previous month." He added, "It is analyzed that construction companies experienced difficulties in progress and work completion due to the longest rainy season in history lasting over 50 days."

The index for September is forecasted to rise 3.6 points from August to 77.1. Senior researcher Park said, "It is common for the index to rise due to the seasonal effect of the end of the summer off-season," and added, "The forecast for next month reflects this effect on the index, and construction orders and work progress are expected to improve compared to August."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.