South Korea Construction Market Size, Trends, and Forecasts by Sector - Commercial, Industrial, Infrastructure, Energy and Utilities, Institutional and Residential Market Analysis to 2030 (Q3 2026)

Summary

The analyst has revised down its growth forecast for the South Korean construction industry for 2026, with the industry now expected to shrink by 2.1% in real terms this year-down from a previous growth forecast of 0.2%. This downward revision is attributed to continued weakness in building construction activity and a decline in construction permits. According to preliminary data released by the Korean Statistical Information Service (KOSIS), the total number of construction permits issued fell by 1.9% year-on-year (YoY) in the first half of 2026, from 59,499 in January-June 2025 to 58,347 in January-June 2026.

Over the remaining part of the forecast period, the South Korean construction industry is expected to register an average annual growth rate of 3.3% between 2027 and 2030, supported by investments in housing and semiconductor manufacturing projects, coupled with investments in the renewable energy sector, in line with the government’s efforts to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. The government aims to develop 100GW of solar and wind capacity by 2030, with renewables accounting for at least 20% of power generation by that year, up from 11.4% in 2025. The government is also supporting the development of solar modules, wind turbines, and battery energy storage systems, while promoting electric and hydrogen vehicles, with a target for these vehicles to account for 40% of new vehicle sales by 2030. Growth will also be supported by data center construction, with the Ministry of Science and ICT launching a public-private alliance in July 2026 to accelerate large-scale artificial intelligence (AI) data centers, targeting 8.4GW of capacity by 2029 and 18.4GW by 2035, with the first phase requiring around KRW550 trillion ($394.4 billion) in investment.

The analyst’s Construction in South Korea - Key Trends and Opportunities to 2030 (Q3 2026) report provides detailed market analysis, information, and insights into the South Korean construction industry, including:

The South Korean construction industry's growth prospects by market, project type, and construction activity
Critical insight into the impact of industry trends and issues, as well as an analysis of key risks and opportunities in the South Korean construction industry
Analysis of the mega-project pipeline, focusing on development stages and participants, in addition to listings of major projects in the pipeline.

Scope

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of the construction industry in South Korea. It provides:

Historical (2021-2025) and forecast (2026-2030) valuations of the construction industry in South Korea featuring details of key growth drivers.
Segmentation by sector (commercial, industrial, infrastructure, energy and utilities, institutional and residential) and by sub-sector
Analysis of the mega-project pipeline, including breakdowns by development stage across all sectors, and projected spending on projects in the existing pipeline.
Listings of major projects, in addition to details of leading contractors and consultants

Reasons to Buy

Identify and evaluate market opportunities using our standardized valuation and forecasting methodologies
Assess market growth potential at a micro-level with over 600 time-series data forecasts
Understand the latest industry and market trends
Formulate and validate business strategies using the analyst's critical and actionable insight
Assess business risks, including cost, regulatory and competitive pressures
Evaluate competitive risk and success factors

1 Executive Summary2 Construction Industry: At-a-Glance

3 Context

3.1 Economic Performance
3.2 Political Environment and Policy
3.3 Demographics
3.4 Risk Profile

4 Construction Outlook

4.1 All Construction

Outlook
Latest news and developments
Construction Projects Momentum Index

4.2 Commercial Construction

Outlook
Project analytics
Latest news and developments

4.3 Industrial Construction

Outlook
Project analytics
Latest news and developments

4.4 Infrastructure Construction

Outlook
Project analytics
Latest news and developments

4.5 Energy and Utilities Construction

Outlook
Project analytics
Latest news and developments

4.6 Institutional Construction

Outlook
Project analytics
Latest news and developments

4.7 Residential Construction

Outlook
Project analytics
Latest news and developments

5 Key Industry Participants

5.1 Contractors
5.2 Consultants

6 Construction Market Data

7 Appendix

7.1 What is this Report About?
7.2 Definitions
7.3 CRI Methodology

About the Analyst
Contact Us

List of Tables

Table 1: Construction Industry Key Data
Table 2: South Korea, Key Economic Indicators
Table 3: South Korea, Commercial Construction Output by Project Type (Real % Change), 2021-30
Table 4: South Korea, Top Commercial Construction Projects by Value
Table 5: South Korea, Industrial Construction Output by Project Type (Real % Change), 2021-30
Table 6: South Korea, Top Industrial Construction Projects by Value
Table 7: South Korea, Infrastructure Construction Output by Project Type (Real % Change), 2021-30
Table 8: South Korea, Top Infrastructure Construction Projects by Value
Table 9: South Korea, Energy and Utilities Construction Output by Project Type (Real % Change), 2021-30
Table 10: South Korea, Top Energy and Utilities Construction Projects by Value
Table 11: South Korea, Institutional Construction Output by Project Type (Real % Change), 2021-30
Table 12: South Korea, Top Institutional Construction Projects by Value
Table 13: South Korea, Residential Construction Output by Project Type (Real % Change), 2021-30
Table 14: South Korea, Top Residential Construction Projects by Value
Table 15: South Korea, Key Contractors
Table 16: South Korea, Key Consultants
Table 17: South Korea Construction Output Value (Real, $ Million)
Table 18: South Korea Construction Output Value (Nominal, KRW Billion)
Table 19: GlobalData Construction Market Definitions
Table 20: GlobalData Construction Market Definitions
Table 21: Ratings, Scores and Definitions

List of Figures

Figure 1: North-East Asia, Construction Output (Real % Change), 2024-30
Figure 2: South Korea, Construction Output by Sector (Real % Change), 2024-26 and 2027-30
Figure 3: South Korea, Risk Summary
Figure 4: South Korea, Risk Regional Comparison
Figure 5: South Korea, Construction Output Value (Real, $ Million, 2022 Prices and Exchange Rate), 2021-30
Figure 6: South Korea, Construction Output Value, by Sector (Real, $ Million), 2021-30
Figure 7: South Korea, Construction Value-Add (KRW Trillion, 2020 Chained Prices, Unadjusted)
Figure 8: South Korea, Construction Production Index (2020=100)
Figure 9: South Korea, Total Value of Construction Completed, Constant Prices, KRW Billion, % Change, YoY
Figure 10: South Korea, Total Value of Construction Orders Received (Current Prices, % Change YoY)
Figure 11: South Korea, Total Number of Building Construction Permits
Figure 12: South Korea, Construction Business Survey Index
Figure 13: South Korea, Construction Projects Momentum Index
Figure 14: North-East Asia, Construction Projects Momentum Index
Figure 15: South Korea, Commercial Construction Output by Project Type (Real, $ Million), 2021-30
Figure 16: South Korea, Commercial Construction Projects Pipeline, Value by Stage ($ Million)
Figure 17: South Korea, Wholesale and retail trade Value-Add (KRW Billion, 2020 chained prices, unadjusted)
Figure 18: South Korea, Accommodation and Food Services Value-Add (KRW Billion, 2020 chained prices, unadjusted)
Figure 19: South Korea, Gross Floor Area of Commercial Construction Permits, In Thousand m2
Figure 20: South Korea, Retail Sales Value and Volume Index, (2020=100)
Figure 21: South Korea, Industrial Construction Output by Project Type (Real, $ Million), 2021-30
Figure 22: South Korea, Industrial Construction Projects Pipeline, Value by Stage ($ Million)
Figure 23: South Korea, Gross Floor Area of Industrial Construction Permits, In Thousand m2
Figure 24: South Korea, Manufacturing Value-Add (KRW Billion, 2020 Chained Prices, Unadjusted)
Figure 25: South Korea, Industrial Production Index (2020=100)
Figure 26: South Korea, Total Export Value ($ Billion)
Figure 27: South Korea, Total Value of Construction Contracts Received for Industrial Plants, (KRW Billion), In Current Prices
Figure 28: South Korea, Infrastructure Construction Output by Project Type (Real, $ Million), 2021-30
Figure 29: South Korea, Infrastructure Construction Projects Pipeline, Value by Stage ($ Million)
Figure 30: South Korea, Energy and Utilities Construction Output by Project Type (Real, $ Million), 2021-30
Figure 31: South Korea, Energy and Utilities Construction Projects Pipeline, Value by Stage ($ Million)
Figure 32: South Korea, Institutional Construction Output by Project Type (Real, $ Million), 2021-30
Figure 33: South Korea, Institutional Construction Projects Pipeline, Value by Stage ($ Million)
Figure 34: South Korea, Gross Floor Area of Permits Issued for Educational and Social Use, In Thousand m2
Figure 35: South Korea, Education Sector Value-Add (KRW Billion, 2020 Chained Prices, Unadjusted)
Figure 36: South Korea, Human Health and Social Work Activities Value-Add (KRW Billion, 2020 Chained Prices, Unadjusted)
Figure 37: South Korea, Residential Construction Output by Project Type (Real, $ Million), 2021-30
Figure 38: South Korea, Residential Construction Projects Pipeline, Value by Stage ($ Million)
Figure 39: South Korea, Residential Construction Permits (Total Number)
Figure 40: South Korea, Real Estate Value-Add (KRW Trillion, 2020 Chained Prices)
Figure 41: South Korea, Headquarters of Key Contractors (% of Total Project Pipeline)
Figure 42: South Korea, Headquarters of Key Consultants (% of Total Project Pipeline)

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