Construction industry GDP New Zealand 2015-2024
New Zealand's construction industry has seen relatively continuous growth over the past decade, contributing around 17.39 billion New Zealand dollars in gross domestic product (GDP) in the year ended March 2024. While the industry is expected to continue growing, meeting the infrastructure and housing needs of the country’s growing population will not be without its fair share of challenges.
Key construction segments
In New Zealand, the construction sector includes residential builds, commercial builds, and infrastructure such as roads and energy services. All segments have grown due to increasing demand for housing, offices, roads, energy, fiber installation, and water supply. New Zealand’s housing market has been an important topic over the years, with larger metropolitan regions such as Auckland facing large housing shortages. The value of residential building consents issued across the nation grew consistently between 2017 and 2022 before witnessing a decline in 2023 and 2024. In terms of infrastructure construction starting in 2024, transportation and water infrastructure projects led by volume.
Climate resilience of infrastructure
Owing to its geographical location, New Zealand has a relatively high natural disaster risk, including flooding and cyclones. Following damages caused to properties, roads, bridges, and other infrastructure in 2023 and 2024 due to Cyclone Gabrielle, the East Coast floods, and several wildfires, the ability of the country's housing and infrastructure to withstand climate change has shifted into focus. Building new and adapting existing buildings and infrastructure to be more climate resilient is becoming vital in terms of preparedness and the smooth functionality of the construction pipeline as a whole to reduce cancellations, delays, and high rebuild costs.