Australian house-building activity rounds off strong 2013

Australia's construction industry had a strong 2013, according to the Housing Industry Association.

Figures from the ABS show that the number of dwelling commencements increased by 8.2 per cent in the final quarter of 2013. Detached house commencements declined by 0.7 per cent in the December quarter of 2013 while multi-unit commencements increased by 21.3 per cent in the quarter.

The highlights "ongoing new home building recovery", says the Housing Industry Association (HIA).

“Today’s data provides confirmation of what leading indicators had been implying – the new home building industry rounded out 2013 on a strong note," comments HIA Economist Geordan Murray.

"Original figures show there were 47,326 dwellings commenced in the December quarter which was the strongest quarterly result since 2002, even surpassing the highs during the period impacted by the GFC stimulus.

“Throughout the duration of the recovery to date, growth has been driven primarily by the NSW and WA markets. Given that the level of activity in these two markets has now reached historic highs, growth beyond the current levels could to be more difficult."

But it was neither NSW nor WA that drove the growth in the December quarter, notes Murray. Dwelling commencements in NSW rose by a relatively modest 2.8 per cent, while commencements in WA declined by 1.3 per cent.

“The most notable contributor to the strong growth in dwelling commencements in the December quarter was Victoria, where commencement numbers jumped 11.3 per cent in the quarter owing to a 33 per cent jump in multi-unit commencements,” added Murray.