Some 790 construction permits were issued in Croatia in May 2018, 7.7 percent fewer compared to May 2017, and the estimated value of construction works for which the permits were issued is some 1.85 billion kuna (€250 million), or 24.1 percent less on the year, the national statistics bureau reported on Monday.

“Despite monthly growth, there is a drop in construction permits issued compared to the same period last year, for the second month in a row,” the Raiffeisenbank Austria (RBA) analysts said, commenting on the report.

Some 83 percent, or 661, construction permits were issued for buildings, and 17 percent (134) for other structures, the data showed.

In the first five months of 2018, 3,848 permits were issued, which is a 1.2 percent decrease compared to the same period last year. The estimated value of construction works for which the permits were issued was some 9.65 billion kuna (€1.3 billion), 14.5 percent less than in 2017.

Construction permits were issued for 840 apartments in May, a 20.3 percent decrease from May 2017.

The RBA analysis said that the number of construction permits issued is still some 20 percent under the levels of 2008, the year when the financial crisis began in Croatia, which the country only emerged from in 2014.

This is confirmed by the fact that the share of construction in national GDP dropped from 7.8 percent in 2008 to 4.6 percent in 2017, RBA analysis said.

(€1 = 7.39 kuna)

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