June key figures
| Jun Qtr 20 | Mar Qtr 20 to Jun Qtr 20 | Jun Qtr 19 to Jun Qtr 20 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $m | % change | % change | ||
| Seasonally adjusted estimates(a) | ||||
| Value of work done | ||||
| For the private sector | 13 461.8 | 8.4 | 4.7 | |
| For the public sector(b) | 8 672.6 | 1.3 | 3.8 | |
| Total engineering construction | 22 134.3 | 5.5 | 4.4 | |
a. Reference year for chain volume measures is 2017-18.
b. Includes work done by the private sector for the public sector and work done by the public sector.
June key points
Value of work done, chain volume measures
Total
- The seasonally adjusted estimate for the value of total engineering construction work done rose 5.5% in the June quarter to $22,134.3m.
Private sector
- The seasonally adjusted estimate for the value of work done for the private sector rose 8.4% in the June quarter to $13,461.8m.
Public sector
- The seasonally adjusted estimate for the value of work done for the public sector rose 1.3% in the June quarter to $8,672.6m.
Value of work commenced, current prices
- The value of work commenced in the June quarter was $16,413.3m in original terms, a decrease of 31.6% from the March quarter.
About this issue
This publication updates the preliminary estimates released in Construction Work Done, Australia (cat. no. 8755.0) on 25 August 2020.
Data note
This release includes revisions to Engineering Construction data back to March 2020.
Several time series spreadsheets for recent quarters contain 'np' (not available for publication) annotations. This is due to confidential data being contained in these series.
Mining projects tend to be complex in structure and comprise a number of different investment activities including exploration, engineering construction, plant and equipment and buildings. A feature article released in the March 2012 issue of Private New Capital Expenditure and Expected Expenditure, Australia (cat. no. 5625.0) provides a summary of the conceptual basis of the relevant ABS publications that measure investment in Australia, using a hypothetical mining project to illustrate how this investment is reflected in ABS data.
Managing the impact of Coronavirus (COVID-19) on engineering construction statistics
The ABS is currently monitoring for potential impacts from the Coronavirus (COVID-19) on construction activity statistics and will continue to do so for the period of the pandemic.
Quality assurance of June quarter data did not identify any significant impact to headline statistics. The designation of construction as an essential service enabled activity to progress despite social distancing restrictions implemented from late March.
The ABS is actively managing the potential risks from COVID-19 to data collection operations. The ABS appreciates the support of survey respondents in continuing to provide the data to compile this publication.
Suspension of trend series
The trend series attempts to measure underlying behaviour in construction activity. This measurement will be significantly affected by changes to regular patterns in activity during this time, as the construction industry faces on-going uncertainty. If the trend estimates in this publication were to be calculated without fully accounting for this irregular event, they would likely provide a misleading view of underlying construction activity.
It may be some time before the underlying trend in construction activity can be accurately estimated. The trend series have therefore been suspended starting from June 2020. The trend series will be reinstated when more certainty emerges in the underlying trend.
Inquiries
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