Singapore's construction costs are the 4th highest in Asia

The public sector is expected to boost demand and drive costs between -1% to +2%.

Singapore is now the fourth most expensive city in Asia to build in, design and consultancy firm Arcadis revealed. It follows Hong Kong, Macau and Tokyo in Asia, and ranks 27th in the world on the construction cost index.

According to the International Construction Costs 2018 report, Singapore’s construction market has started to pick up, after several years of continuous correction caused by over-supply and a slowing economy. "Demand is higher and there has been a change in market sentiment as construction cost levels are no longer dropping," it said.

Moreover, construction cost movement for 2018 is anticipated to range between -1% and +2%. "Public sector demand remains the key contributor with approximately 60% of the total forecasted construction demand," Arcadis added.

Arcadis Singapore executive director and head of cost management & quantity surveying Khoo Sze Boon commented, “Over the past 10 years, Singapore has maintained $20b and above in terms of construction demand. This has allowed stability in the Singapore construction sector. The push for technology adoption and digitalization through the Construction Industry Transformation Map will help transform the built environment industry to be more productive and sustainable. And capability development to equip our people with new skillsets will be key to be ready for this transformation journey.”

Tim Risbridger, country head Singapore at Arcadis noted that 2018 is seeing an upturn with increased demand for construction in Singapore. "With constrained capacity in many markets in the region, the only way to deliver is to do things differently. It is great to see that the Singapore construction industry, encouraged by the government, is actively embracing digitalization so that it can enjoy greater productivity and safer ways of working," he added.

Arcadis' report details and ranks the relative cost of construction in 50 of the world’s major cities.