By Jim Haughey, Director, Research and Analytics, Reed Construction Data
April 1, 2008
Building Design and Construction
The warehouse market, as always, is tracking very closely with trends in the overall economy. Warehouse construction activity in 2007 stalled at a high level, parallel to the trend in GDP growth. The “goods” portion of the GDP increased 4.1% in 2006, but rose only 1.9% in 2007. Warehouse construction spending increased 19% from the middle of 2006 through the middle of 2007, but since then has declined at a 7% annual pace. Similarly, the value of warehouse construction starts slowed slightly in the second half of 2007, and was about one-third lower that the peak in starts in the middle of 2005.
