The total gross value of construction work main contractors performed dropped 2.5% in nominal terms from a year earlier to $90.8 billion in 2005, the Census & Statistics Department says.

After discounting price changes, the total gross value of construction work main contractors performed fell 2.4% in real terms over the same period.

Analysed by type of construction work, the gross value of construction work performed at private-sector sites totalled $26.4 billion, down 5.9% in nominal terms. In real terms, it fell 6.1%. The fall was mainly due to completion of work at some large residential building sites.

The gross value of construction work performed at public-sector sites dropped 21.8% in nominal terms, to $22.3 billion in 2005. It fell 21.1% in real terms. The drop was mainly due to completion of work on some public residential building projects.

The gross value of construction work performed at locations other than construction sites rose15.1% in nominal terms, to $42.1 billion. It increased 15.9% in real terms.

Residential building projects accounted for the largest share in the gross value of construction work performed at construction sites in 2005. The gross value of these projects amounted to $16.9 billion, down 15.6% in nominal terms over a year earlier.

Transport projects constituted the second-largest category of construction site work. The gross value of these projects totalled $9.8 billion in 2005, down 20.8% in nominal terms from a year earlier.