China - Construction and Green BuildingChina – Green Building

Construction Overview

Exchange Rates: $1= RMB 6.7
Source: National Sources, BMI Research
 
China is the world’s largest construction market and the United States is China’s second largest source of imports for the construction industry, with an import market share of 13%.  However, over the last several years, the construction market in China has slowed as the country looks to shift to a services-led economy and implement more sustainable construction policies.  The construction industry is forecasted to grow at an annual average of 5% in real terms between 2019 and 2023.  This stands in contrast with the 9.9% annual average recorded from 2008-2017.

China is also looking to shift away from large scale infrastructure projects toward more locally oriented projects.  Projects such as water supply and treatment plants, road improvements, urban metro systems, and public parks align with the 13th Five-Year Plan's (FYP) goals of reducing road traffic and pollution, redeveloping dilapidated housing, and promoting the growth of small and medium-sized cities.  Replacing old heating infrastructure in cities also provides a niche opportunity.

Growth in the residential and non-residential construction segments will be more muted, as a structural slowdown in China's economy negatively impacts demand for new commercial and industrial buildings.  Residential construction will experience slow but stable growth, as additional restrictions on home purchases are implemented in an attempt to cool the housing market.
 
China’s Increasing Emphasis on Green Building
Increasing urbanization as well as national priorities on stability and sustainability have helped China expand its commitments to conserve resources and reduce greenhouse gas emissions through green construction.  The ongoing State Council Green Building Action Plan, launched in 2014, mandates that public buildings such as schools, hospitals, museums, stadiums, and affordable housing, as well as any single building area over 20,000 square meters, such as airports, railway stations, hotels, restaurants, shopping malls, offices, and other large public buildings, must meet the green building standards of China’s 3-Star Rating System GBEL (The Green Building Evaluation Label).  This system is administered by the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development (MOHURD) and evaluates projects based on six categories: land, energy, water, resource/material efficiency, indoor environmental quality, and operational management. The Green Building Action Plan also provides for the refurbishment of some 400 million square meters of existing urban housing in northern China and 400,000 rural dwellings will be subject to major thermal rehabilitation works.

The U.S. Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification is also prevalent in China. In 2018, LEED-certified Grade A office buildings exceeded 523 million square meters across greater China, an increase of 7.3% from the previous year, and accounted for over 27% of the total market share in ten prominent cities. Due to their increased sustainability, stability and social responsibility, Grade A offices position companies to better weather a downward commercial real estate market.  Moreover, according to the CBRE, the average occupancy of premium LEED projects in China is 10% higher and the rental fee is 25% higher than comparable non-LEED buildings.
  
U.S. Industry Standards
In response to China’s leadership’s emphasis on the country’s urbanization with a wide range of green buildings practices, U.S. industry standards continue to play a major role in serving the needs of the Chinese green building community. According to the Green Business Certification Inc. (GBCI), China ranks 1^st among countries and regions for LEED certification and is dedicated to a greener and more sustainable built environment. In addition, the WELL Building Standard™, created by New York-based Delos and focuses on human health and wellness in the built environments, is becoming increasingly popular in China. As of April 28, 2018, the total registered WELL projects in China has reached 4,923,000 square meters by a handful of leading Chinese real estate developers.
 
Trade Shows & Events
Green Architecture and Construction Materials Expo 2019
Shanghai New International Expo Centre
 
CRH EXPO 2020 (China Refrigeration Exhibition)
April 9th-11th, 2020, Beijing International Expo Centre
 
China International Trade Fair for Heating, Ventilation, Air-Conditioning, Sanitation & Home
Comfort Systems
May 6-8, 2020 Beijing, New China Int’l Exhibition Center, Beijing
 
Green Build China 2010
October 23-24, Shanghai Tower
 
China International Lighting & Intelligent Application Expo
15-17 Oct 2019, Beijing
 
The 14th Int’l Conference on Green and Energy-Efficient Buildings and New Technologies Expo
April 3–4, 2019, Shenzhen, China
 
U.S. Green Build 2020
14 - 16 November 2020, McCormick Place, Chicago, Illinois

Web Resources

Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development:                                              http://www.mohurd.gov.cn
Ministry of Ecology and Environment:                                                                         http://www.mee.gov.cn
China Engineering and Consulting Association:                                                        http://www.chinaeda.org/
Science -Technology and Industrialization Promotion Center of MOHURD:    http://www.cstcmoc.org.cn/
 
U.S. Commercial Service Contact for Construction and Green Building Sector
Shujuan Cao, Commercial Specialist FCS Beijing
Email: Shujuan.cao@trade.gov
T:  +86-10-8531-4463
 
Juliet Lu, Commercial Specialist FCS Shanghai
Email: Juliet.Lu@trade.gov
T:  +86-21-6279-8780
 
Jericho Li, Senior Commercial Specialist FCS Guangzhou
Email: Jericho.Li@trade.gov
T:  +86-20-3814-5875
 
Dongmei Sun, Commercial Specialist FCS Shenyang
Email: Dongmei.Sun@trade.gov
T:  +86-24-2322-1198
 
Jing Wang, Commercial Specialist FCS Wuhan
Email: Jing.Wang@trade.gov
T:  +86-27-8555-7791
 
Shiyang Cui, Commercial Specialist FCS Chengdu
Email: Cui.Shiyang@trade.gov
T:  +86-28-8598-6546
 
Kimmy Lee, Commercial Specialist FCS Hong Kong
Email: Kimmy.Lee@trade.gov
T:  +852-2521-5950