NANTONG, China—Cai Zhonghui has worked in China’s construction industry all his adult life, graduating from a laborer to owning a company with 100 workers building factories and roads around eastern China.
Cai says the industry is now facing the toughest challenges he has seen, squeezed by high materials costs, tougher regulations and tighter access to credit, making him cautious about taking on new projects.
