Commercial construction confidence holds steady in June quarter

"Building activity is set to continue gaining strength on the back of improved confidence in residential building which is the highest it has been for six years in the June quarter of 2008," said CEO of Master Builders Australia, Wilhelm Harnisch.

"The survey's key indicators show that a good pipeline of work underpins current confidence levels and supports Master Builders' forecast that total dwelling commencements will exceed 200,000 by 2017," he said.

Commercial construction prospects

"The strong upturn in residential building continued its gradual translation into improved prospects for commercial construction," Wilhelm Harnisch said.

"Encouragingly, the green shoots of returning confidence in the commercial construction sector have consolidated with the June quarter survey showing confidence has risen for the second consecutive quarter," he said.

"Builders' confidence in the prospects for their own business rose for the fourth consecutive quarter. This is particularly reflective of the residential building sector's response to low rates and is an encouraging trend indicating industry's expectation that business activity will continue to rise over the next six months.

"The slight easing of business confidence post the Federal Budget highlights the underlying vulnerability of the recovery in building and construction and the need for the Federal Government to implement its Budget repair strategy with the responsible support of the new Senate," Wilhelm Harnisch said.