2021 construction demand forecast to recover, but shadow of manpower crunch remains

TOTAL construction demand is projected to recover to between S$23 billion and S$28 billion this year, and industry players are mixed on whether they have the capacity to cope with the rising demand, given manpower issues.

Allan Tan, managing director of United Tec Construction, said while the forecasts are an encouraging sign for the industry, he noted that there are still many risks and uncertainties.

"The labour crunch is still very bad, (and) import cases are still high," he said, adding that with the Covid-19 cases in China and Malaysia - two main sources in the supply chain - getting worse, this will affect the capabilities of companies.