Overall construction activity
For 2019, it is estimated that Cyprus’ GDP grew at a rate of 3.2%. This increase is mainly attributed to the following sectors: "Construction", “Information and Communication”, “Professional, scientific and technical activities”, “Administrative and support service activities” and “Arts, Entertainment and Recreation”. Negative growth was recorded by the sector "Financial and Insurance Activities". The Output Prices Index in Construction for the fourth quarter of 2019 reached 112.62 units (base year 2015=100.0), recording a marginal decrease of 0.3% over the third quarter of 2019 (112.98 units). Compared to the same quarter of the previous year, the index recorded an increase of 4.8%. For the period January to December 2019, the overall index registered an increase of 6% compared to the corresponding period of 2018. In 2019, the total number (average) of employed persons was 416,478, and the employment rate 58.5% in comparison to 400,878 persons in 2018 (employment rate 57.8%). In 2019, the number of persons employed in the construction sector was 40,287 (36,956 males, 3,330 females) of which 26,754 were Cypriots, 7,929 EU nationals and 5,604 non-EU nationals. The number of unemployed persons in the construction sector in 2019 was 1,436 (average) compared to 1,553 (average) in 2018.
Housebuilding
5,179 building permits for residential buildings were issued during the period January to December 2019, (compared to 4,456 issued during the same period of 2018) providing for the construction of 9,627 dwelling units compared to 6,201 in the same period in 2018. These building permits comprise 3,789 single houses corresponding to 3,239 dwelling units and 1,379 buildings with two or more housing units corresponding to 1,050 housing units during the period January to December 2018. The total value of these permits increased by 46.5% and the total area by 37.6%. Τhe number of dwelling units recorded an increase of 35.5%.
GDP 2019
BILLION
POPULATION 2019
Total investment in construction in 2019
BILLION
Non-residential construction
During the period January to December 2019, 1,121 building permits were issued for non-residential buildings, recording an increase of 0.08% compared to the same period of 2018. The total area of these buildings reached 419,867 m² and the total value amounted to €926.5 million. This included 212 building permits providing for the construction of 35 hotels and 177 similar buildings, 99 office buildings, 125 industrial buildings and warehouses, 188 public entertainment buildings and buildings used for recreational, educational or medical purposes, 113 wholesale and retail trade buildings and 383 other non-residential buildings.
Civil engineering
271 building permits were issued for civil engineering projects during the period January to December 2019 (compared to 257 in the same period of 2018). The total area of these projects represented 19,079 m² re-cording an increase of 0.16 % compared to the previous year. Their total value reached €267.6 million recordings an increase of 15.3 %. In addition, 178 building permits were issued providing for the execution of road construction projects in comparison to 130 building permits issued during the corresponding period of 2018. The total value of these projects reached €13.2 million recordings an increase of 34.2%. 682 building permits were issued for big projects including 5,397 dwelling units, an increase of 20.2% compared to the same period of 2018. The total area of these projects represented 1,616,185 m² recordings an increase of 43.9% compared to 2018. Their total value reached €3.7 billion, an increase of 53.7%. 6,536 building permits were issued for small projects including 4,230 dwelling units recording an increase of 10.2%. The total area of these projects represented 969,565 m², an increase of 15.3% compared to 820,341 m² for the period January to December of the previous year. Their total value amounted to €1 billion, which represents an increase of 20.3%. The number of permits providing for the division of plots during the period January to December 2019 rose to 469, recording an increase of 5.1% compared to the same period of 2018.
| Number of building permits in residential construction | |||||||
| 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019a | 2020b | |||
| single dwelling | 2,022 | 2,302 | 2,894 | 2,554 | NA | ||
| collective dwelling | 1,360 | 2,155 | 3,098 | 4,464 | NA | ||
| other types of dwelling | 267 | 482 | 209 | 593 | NA | ||
| Total | 3,649 | 4,939 | 6,201 | 7,611 | NA | ||
| (Collective dwellings and other types of buildings: in number of flats) | |||||||
