Construction

The government in the Philippines is giving a new push to major construction projects awarded under a public-private partnership scheme, putting the building sector on a strong growth path after last year's Typhoon Haiyan wrecked havoc in the southeast Asian country.

Greater investment and an increased pace of new project launches should see Brunei Darussalam’s transport and logistics reinforced over the next few years, building on recent improvements to the Sultanate’s infrastructure.

Muted levels of construction activity since the 2011 revolution, combined with constraints on electricity supply, has stifled operating conditions for Egypt’s cement producers, though new projects scheduled to launch in the second half of 2014 could provide a helpful boost to the segment, recently buoyed by the successful IPO of Arabian Cement.

The government in Papua New Guinea (PNG) has pledged to upgrade its infrastructure after years of underinvestment, a move which will also help plug the construction gap as the country’s mega project, the $19bn Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) plant, is now completed and the related real-estate boom starts to cool.

New production capacity in Mongolia’s cement industry is set to meet rising demand as advanced technology is replacing old equipment, moving towards self sufficiency in one of the key materials in the construction trade.

The Kingdom of Bahrain is pushing forward with its plan to invest $4.4bn in housing, utilities and education projects over the next three years. The first wave of infrastructure development, announced in January, is gaining momentum, and new construction tenders are starting to be awarded.