Auckland Council's draft budget for 2023 could see funding for the service reduced or cut completely.
The head of the NZ Certified Builders Association says the sector was only just beginning to catch-up with demand after Covid.
It's the biggest 12-month decline in prices since the year to May 2009.
Figures show China’s GDP growth at 3%, less than half what it was before the pandemic.
It would help students get to New Zealand faster to rebuild a sector that once injected $4.9 billion into the economy.