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Activity rose 5.1% from a year earlier and 7.8% from August, its largest monthly gain of 2026. Residential indicators and business expectations point to a more uneven recovery than the headline suggests.
Argentina’s construction sector delivered its strongest monthly performance of the year in September, in contrast with the continued weakness of manufacturing.
According to INDEC, the national statistics institute, its construction activity index (Indicador Sintético de la Actividad de la Construcción, ISAC) rose 5.1% compared with September 2025. In the seasonally adjusted series, activity jumped 7.8% from August, while the underlying trend remained practically unchanged. That was the largest month-on-month rise of 2026, ahead of the 6% recorded in May.
The rebound also turned the year’s cumulative result positive. Activity for January to September was 1.3% higher than in the same period of 2025.
A recovery after two weak months
September’s figure looks stronger because of the months that came before it. Construction activity had fallen 4.5% year on year in July and 4.4% in August. Over the first nine months of the year, five months showed annual growth, and four showed declines.[11]
The longer view is more sobering. Grupo Construya, a group of building-materials companies, calculated that activity between January and August 2026 was 17.4% below the average for the same months from 2012 to 2025. It described the sector as moving in a “sawtooth” pattern with a downward trend.
The contrast with industry was sharp. Manufacturing output fell 1.8% year on year in September, although it rose 0.7% compared with August.
Materials: concrete and paint led the gains
The recovery showed up directly in deliveries from building-materials suppliers, although unevenly. Seven of the 13 material groups INDEC reports rose year on year, and six fell.
| Material | Change vs. September 2025 |
|---|---|
| Construction paints | +22.4% |
| Ready-mix concrete | +12.8% |
| Taps, seamless steel tubes and flat glass | +12.2% |
| Reinforcing bar and construction steel | +5.2% |
| Portland cement | +4.6% |
| Plasterboard | +1.2% |
| Asphalt | +0.5% |
| Hollow bricks | −0.7% |
| Ceramic floor and wall tiles | −7.4% |
| Gypsum | −7.7% |
| Ceramic sanitaryware | −8.2% |
| Granite and calcareous tiles | −15.0% |
Source: INDEC figures reported by Infobae.
Asphalt, often mentioned in early coverage of the rebound, barely grew compared with a year earlier. Over the first nine months, asphalt deliveries remained 8.9% lower than in 2025.
Cement offered a clearer sign of improvement. Portland cement deliveries reached 959,700 tonnes in September, ending four months of stagnation. Between May and August, they had averaged 811,700 tonnes a month. It was also the largest monthly volume since October 2025. Even so, the September total was 7.5% below the average for Septembers from 2011 to 2025, and year-to-date deliveries were still 2.9% lower than in 2025.
The energy factor
Part of the sector’s growth this year came from energy investment rather than housing or general building. INDEC groups taps, seamless steel tubes and flat glass together, and that category is up 21.8% over the first nine months.
Grupo Construya attributes that category’s expansion to investment in the oil sector. According to its calculations, the category accounted for most of the index’s cumulative growth through August; without it, activity would have been 2.0% lower than in 2025.
Housing has lagged behind. The Construya Index, which tracks deliveries of materials linked mainly to residential construction, fell 0.6% from August and 2.9% year on year in September. That left it at its lowest level since February 2026.
Jobs and building permits
The sector’s recovery has also reached the labor market, although modestly. Employment data are published one month behind. In August, private construction companies had 382,669 registered salaried jobs, 1.7% more than a year earlier. Employment for January to August was 0.8% higher.
Building permits are a forward-looking indicator. In the 246 municipalities INDEC surveyed, it authorized 1.29 million square meters of construction in August. That was 10.9% less than a year earlier, although the first eight months’ total remained 4.8% higher.
Earlier figures showed permit growth concentrated in a few places. From January to July, the City of Buenos Aires increased its authorized area by 31.7% and Buenos Aires Province by 15.6%. Neuquén, home to the Vaca Muerta oil and gas field, rose 8.4%, while Tierra del Fuego increased 26.4%.
Why builders remain cautious
Despite the strong September figures, construction companies expect little change in the final quarter of 2026. INDEC’s qualitative survey covers approximately 100 large construction firms. Its findings for October to December were:
| Company type | Expect no change | Expect a decline | Expect an increase |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mainly private construction | 74.0% | 15.0% | 11.0% |
| Mainly public works | 62.4% | 23.5% | 14.1% |
Source: INDEC survey reported by La Arena.
Companies expecting activity to fall pointed mainly to weaker economic activity, high construction costs and difficulties obtaining finance. Lack of credit was particularly relevant for private builders. Payment delays weighed more heavily on companies working on public projects.
Firms also identified the measures they believed would best support activity. Private builders most often cited lower tax burdens (26.4%) and access to construction credit (22.6%). Public-works firms emphasized specific financing (24.5%) and price stability (22%).
What it means for property
For property investors, September’s data signal improvement, though not proof of a broad construction boom.
- More construction activity: rising concrete, cement, and paint deliveries show more work moved forward during the month.
- Housing lagging: the decline in the residential-focused Construya Index suggests housing is recovering more slowly than the overall sector.
- Concentrated pipeline: permit growth points to a stronger pipeline in Buenos Aires and certain provincial markets, while other regions remain weaker.
- What to watch: the key indicators in the coming months will be whether the September rebound continues, whether demand for residential materials improves, and whether better access to mortgage and construction credit turns permits into completed projects.
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