ISTANBUL
Production in Türkiye’s construction sector rose 7.5% on an annual basis as of December 2025 and the construction output index saw its record high, according to data from the statistical office TurkStat.
Türkiye’s construction output index, without calendar effects, rose to its highest at 151.2 points in December 2025, the data showed.
The index reached 150.4 points when adjusted for calendar effects, the highest since January 2022 when the data began to be collected, up 7.5%.
The index, adjusted for both calendar and season effects, totaled 129.1 points at the same time.
Meanwhile, all sub-sector indexes of construction production index in December 2025 reached peak highs.
The building construction index rose 8.4%, civil engineering index 5.8%, and specialized construction activities index 5.5% year-on-year.
Turkish construction offsets 2024’s slowdown in 2025
Ali Hepsen, a professor of business administration at Istanbul University, told Anadolu that the country’s construction production saw volatility for a long time, especially due to difficulties in financing, which suppressed production in 2024.
“However, reaching a peak level like 150.4 points is important — the acceleration on construction sites has already been felt in the field since the second half of last year, and the data reflects that,” he said.
Hepsen noted that the 8.4% rise in the building construction index reflects housing remains the sector’s driver, while the rise in non-building construction, which TurkStat calls the civil engineering index in its data, reflects the support from public investments. Meanwhile, specialized construction activities’ increase indicates that “the supply chain is working.”
He said these developments point to a “normalization rather than a new leap.”
“The slowdown in 2024 was offset in 2025,” he said. “The relative decrease in cost uncertainty accelerated unfinished projects.”
“However, the data alone does not indicate demand health or predictability since production and financial resilience are not the same — it’s necessary to make this distinction,” he added.
Hepsen said that extending this momentum into 2026 “would not be easy,” and that the rise last year was led by the completion of delayed production, so the continuation of this momentum depends on the start of new projects, which require financing.
He mentioned that contractors are more selective than before when it comes to starting new projects due to slow sales in certain price segments, but “there is no scenario that could completely slow down the sector.”
“Investments in earthquake-prone regions, urban transformation, and public projects may continue this year but I don’t expect the same high momentum as last year — a more limited and balanced increase is the likely outcome this year, yet the peak of last year is still very important,” he said.
“The sector likes confidence, so when the index rises, suppliers relax, and banks become less distant, but the volume growth alone doesn’t measure success, as sustainability will be determined by financing conditions and demand levels,” he added.
Mustafa Ekiz, head of Turkish construction sector service provider Real Estate and Construction Platform, told Anadolu that the rise in the index shows the sector “has once again assumed its role as the driver of the economy.”
“The rise shows that the housing demand is strong,” he said, noting that the construction production activity will continue into this year, “but the growth is expected to progress more steadily.”
“Access to financing, land costs ,and credit conditions will determine the pace of the sector this year,” he added.
Ekiz said the sector creates employment and stimulates related sectors, while shaping the future of cities.
“Planned production, appropriate financing models, and a quality urbanization approach are needed for sustainable growth,” he said.
*Writing by Emir Yildirim
